Philosophers throughout history have asserted that “the fundamental nature of the world is aesthetic” (Alfred North Whitehead, Gregory Bateson,James Hillman, Martin Foss,Donald Winnicott to name a few.) The word aesthetics comes from the Greek word “aisthenesthai” which is the ability to perceive. James Hillman writes, “Aesthetics in this primordial sense involves sensing the things of [ Read more … ]
teaching
Creativity tip: How can you make it strange?
Creativity happens when we make unusual connections…making what is familiar “strange.” We presume that certain things automatically go together—boat, duck, and water, for example. When we put unusual things together, we are in “creative” terrain. (As a silly example, ham sandwich and hair jell don’t go together…it’s a creative combination.) When we put two paradoxical [ Read more … ]
Profound Vulnerability
Several years ago I attended a Christmas Eve church service where the female pastor (who was clearly a beginner) played Silent Night for the audience on her harp. I have never forgotten that moment, nor her profound vulnerability. The tenderness of it, risking our judgment and ridicule… The educator Maxine Green said, “When we are [ Read more … ]
Trusting Your Gut, Even When It Seems Crazy
A few years ago my intuition nudged me to give a class the assignment of writing a song. Only three students had musical ability (I came up with an alternate assignment for the others), and of those three students, only one young woman—Carmel Bracken, a workshop leader and educator from Ireland—was inspired to give it [ Read more … ]
The Magic of Odd Numbered-Groups (As Opposed to Even-Numbered)
Last week I was interviewed about Getting Messy by Jefferson Public Radio in Southern Oregon. Here’s my interview: The listeners who called in had all kinds of interesting things to say about teaching and learning. Perhaps the most intriguing was one man who spoke of how “three” or “five” is a magic number in group [ Read more … ]