A Child's Backpack
Dear Members of The Waldorf School of Santa Barbara Community,
The thing to do is really notice a child’s backpack. This one is black and red. Champion is the brand. Inside of it, his lunch (salami, cheddar cheese, half an avocado, one chocolate chip cookie), a frayed shoelace, a tube of chapstick that won't twist up, a beeswax candle. When he puts on this backpack it is an unruly large, but falling in with his friends while walking onto campus he is proud of its size. His demeanor says: Look everyone: I have a big backpack, the kind the older kids have. Then, suddenly, this boy and his friends are running. As they pass the loquat tree, they yell loquat tree!
Children—whether it’s a two year old or a twelve year old—have a way of slicing through our distraction, our cynicism, our periodic despairs, our ego trips. Their presences say to us adults, again and again and again, Wake up to the Beauty! Don’t be led astray! Return! Put down your tight storylines about things, your partisan fidelities, your modern frenzy and gadgeted speed, and show up for me and this loquat tree! Their presences say: Read not the times; read the eternities! Their presences say: Life is here, all about us, not in the next text, not in the next Instagram post, not in the next doom-drenched online article, but here, here, here!
It’s perhaps worth recalling that Jesus encouraged folks to look to the children for guidance, for teaching. In chapter 18 of Matthew’s Gospel, we read:
"At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me."
Perhaps Henry Miller meant something similar to Jesus when Miller wrote: "Every day the choice is presented to us, in a thousand different ways, to live up to the spirit which is in us or to deny it."
Speaking of living up to the spirit, we just caught word that Senora Marcela’s camping adventure with her class was very joyous. One parent overheard students saying that it was the best two days of their lives. Relatedly, Grades 7/8 leave on Monday for Headwaters in (very) Northern California for the week.
Otherwise, here at WSSB we are busy with end-of-year activities: plays, Knighting ceremonies, and musical performances. Ms. Hagen just conducted WSSB’s final Strings performance for the year, involving Grades 4 through 8. Next week we will send a link to a recording of this moving, impressive event.
In gratitude,
The WSSB Admin Team