(Click on this link to view some photo reflections)

After teaching at a university for many years, in 2003 I began working for the State of Arkansas.  One of the most difficult things about adjusting to being a bureaucrat for me was adjusting to the work year – no summers off.  As a teacher, I even felt that I had two lives – and spent my summers doing a variety of things that had little to do with teaching. 

   “Are You Going to Scarborough Faire?”   

( Reeder’s Digest - July 1, 2009)

Do you remember the song “Are you going to Scarborough Faire?”  (Click on the hyperlink above.)  It is a song with an unusual text, as many of the songs that speak to us about the human condition across the ages.  The lyrics tell just enough and leave out just enough, that everyone can recognize themselves.  For me, it is a poignant and beautiful song, but carries with it a twist of humor as well.  Years ago, when I first began tending an herb garden each summer, my husband would sing this song to me and chide me if I failed to plant all the herbs listed in the song.  Now every year I make sure to include parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme.  Herbs take almost no effort to grow, but every summer my family and friends are the beneficiaries of the delights of my herb garden.  The fresh herbs add just the right touch to all things sweet and savory – a refreshing rosemary and minted lemon tea, a fresh pesto prepared and tossed at the last minute into a pasta dish, a simple soup of summer squash with fried sage leaves.  Getting the idea?  Just a little effort, but many lovely returns. 

A typical week for me might include several conversations with some of you and perhaps a trip to a meeting such as the one I attended at the National Center for Children in Poverty earlier this week.  Many times I am learning new and amazing things.  At other times, a moment in a conversation with you might reveal a brand new insight to me.  I want to share, to flavor our conversations with these “small but significant” morsels.  It occurred to me that as a Learning Community, all of you involved in the Early Childhood Initiative have much to share.  We already have many rich and satisfying opportunities to “season” our individual work with the thoughtfulness and experience of others who are learning alongside us each day about how to be more effective at strengthening families. 

That is why I have launched this endeavor – “Reeder’s Digest.”  I do not presume that my thoughts and experiences are particularly enlightening or groundbreaking.  However, it is my hope that this may be a way that we can share with each other even the smallest tidbits to help us collectively benefit from the insights that can so easily vanish when not shared.  Please share your thoughts about what you may find here, or comment on what others may bring to the table.  Are you going to Scarborough Faire . . . or anywhere else, as a matter of fact?  While you are out there going, touching the lives of children and families, why not share a bit about what you are experiencing or observing?  You may not feel that your thoughts are ready for a peer-reviewed journal, but that “rough chop” of tantalizing flavor may be just what one of your colleagues needs to stimulate their own growing perception.  Just scroll to the bottom of this page and click on “Comments.”  This will open up a white text box, where you may type in your thoughts.  When you are finished, click on the “Add Comment” button.  I am looking forward to hearing from all of you. 

My best to you,

Martha