Planting excitement upon us,
My daughter asks how to thin the beets.

"When the plants are three inches tall,
Pick the weaker ones and pull them up,"
I say. "You'll take out two thirds of the young  plants
So the rest can grow."

I see a troubled look upon her face,
And realize what I find in myself....

The teacher's quandary:
Picking whom to keep,
Whom to cull...
We put our love into them all.

Watching for first and tender shoots,
Celebrating as the fledgling leaves appear,
Not thinking of a time ahead,
Dreaded time to thin....

Teachers are reluctant to cull,
Building emotional connection,
Providing loving direction,
Promising success to all....

Then come the standardized tests,
The  team selections,
The popularity contests,
The invitations to slumber parties,
The division of elites,
The rising of divas,
The rostering of first teams...

The separation of pariahs begins,
The promise we made to early learners ends,
Superiors, exultant, drown out the tears
Of those left standing by the fence,
Excluded from the chances to advance.

Standing in the seedling beds,
Spring breezes rustling tender leaves,
I turn to Kate....
"It's never easy....
But if we don't  thin the beets,
The beets will not develop
Beneath the leaves."

These damnable analogies arise
Infrequently these days,
And I am standing in the dirt,
Black soil upon on my hands,
Wondering about survival of the weak,
The treatment of humans and young plants,
Pondering humane ways to honor every student
In which I am investing...
Wishing I could see the end of high stakes testing....

Lord,
     *You see me as a saint
     While I see myself a sinner
     You see me on the next page
     As I'm stuck on this one dog eared
     You see me as beyond myself
     I see me where I'm at
     You see me like nobody else
     Please help me to grasp that fact

Lord,
     You see me through your sacrifice
     I fall down on my knees
     You see me through the breath of life
     In you I need to breathe
     You see me in pure love
     A love I'd love to have
     You tell me that you are enough
     Please help me to grasp that fact

Lord,**
     *You see me in eternity
     I see myself finite
     You see me beyond the veil of humanity
     I've yet to turn on that light
     You see me as your greatest creation
     I see all that I lack
     Over me you have elation
     Please help me to grasp that fact

A new thing has happened, a new consensus reached, new wise men crying out in the streets. A message as strange, as it is bold, conveyed to those who are of yet not very old, spreading like fire to those who desire it.
A wisdom that fills the mind with understanding, and the heart with wrath, they no longer desire the common path, a small few among many, the trail blazers rise.
The wise see through the facade, leaving the lies for  the fools, and the pawns, they see the existence with no purpose that the masses adore, In ignorance they find peace, in the lack of knowledge they are content.
A lie no different from the last is enough to throw a life away without regret, blindly excepting whatever is presented as a worthy cause.
An absence of knowledge, and a surplus of faith, spiraling towards an unavoidable fate.

Born into a world of hardship, and stress, we toil in vain for the sake of vanity, we struggle to make names that will be remembered for the ages, while our bones rot in the earth. Short lives wasted on preparing for a tomorrow that never comes, missing out on the joys of today.

When I pronounce the word Future,the first syllable already belongs to the past.When I pronounce the word Silence,I destroy it.”

I told you once, that you were a light as bright as any star, and that you could shine even brighter, however I doubt you remember. When we were nothing more than children, I could already see the light in your eyes, and I did all I could do to protect it as we grew.
As time moved on I watched you become what I knew you were meant to be, a jewel forged in the fires of life's trials, a golden treasure refined in adversity. You became a light in the darkness, and the desire of many.
I warned you not to let them change you, not to let them extinguish your light, but it never mattered.
As time moved on, I watched the light leave your eyes, as the world spun, I watched as you were used, as months turned to years I watched you become something hollow, someone I never knew.
I'm telling you, I miss who you were.