This little fella appears to be seeking shelter from the cold, winter snows. What do you think?
Blossoms clustered together . . . lovely!
Walt Whitman - em Camden, 1891 (Photo credit: marcelo noah)
One of the first assignments I ever had in graduate school was a reflection paper on the Walt Whitman poem “When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer.” At the time I wondered what this assignment had to do with the world of counseling. It is a simple, short poem about a guy who attends a lecture held by a very scholarly astronomer. In time however, the author grows tired of the academic proofs and figures being bandied about, so much so that he slips out of the lecture hall into the night air to sit in silence and gaze up at the stars. After reading the poem many times, I diligently wrote my paper, but I never quite figured out what this simple poem had to do with graduate school and becoming a licensed professional mental health counselor.
That assignment was for a class back in the summer of 2010. I am half-way through my program now. Each successive school quarter becomes more challenging. My head is filled with facts and figures, scholarly peer-reviewed articles, papers to write and books to read — all from an academic perspective. And I am indeed learning a lot about the field of counseling. So much so, that at times I, like the author of the poem, need to slip out of the lecture halls and gaze in silence at the stars. Periodically I need what I call ”a Walt Whitman moment.”
This morning I woke up with “assignments due” on my mind, certain that I would have to rush through my ritual “quiet time” and get right to my studies. When this quarter began almost two weeks ago, I vowed that I would “leave the blogs alone” until June when the quarter draws to a close. I am already chin deep in the most difficult classes to date. Rather than plant myself in front of my window to watch the sun rise while sipping my coffee and listening to the warbling of birds as they come to life, I chose instead to check my email and blog comments before commencing with the next research paper.
And this is where I had my Walt Whitman moment! Doris, a regular reader and blogger, left a comment on one of my blogs along with a link to one of her posts. I hesitated to check it out because I had so much work piled up and deadlines looming, but in the end I thought I would quickly take a peek and leave a comment–a courtesy for a blogging friend. And that choice is what led me to ’slip out of the lecture hall to sit and silently gaze up at the stars’. See the bottom of this post for the link to a breathtaking few minutes. It is a wonderful way to start your day.
Walt Whitman (1819–1892). Leaves of Grass. 1900.
180. When I heard the Learn’d Astronomer
Both photos have two subjects. 
Write text here…
Dear friends and occasional readers,
I just want you to know that I have been stopping by your blogs and often leave comments. I realize however, that you would never know that because my comments just disappear. I don’t know why this is happening. I’ve sent emails to WP Support, to no avail. You might check your ‘spam’ folder to see if my comments end up there, but for now, I don’t know what happens. Like I said, I just want you to know that I have been reading your wonderful postings . . . at least for now.
I’m heading off to study (I’m back in school), so my absence will be real for a while, but until now I have been to see you. Maybe WP will see this (or maybe not) and possibly something will be done to correct the situation (possibly). At any rate, thank you for stopping by, and sometime maybe I’ll once again be afforded the opportunity to comment on your wonderful blogs. Who knows?
Sincerely,
Cecelia Futch
Passover is the story of a people’s journey from slavery to freedom. We began our observance of Passover this year on Friday evening, and will continue till sundown on Saturday evening. You can read more about this at Perpetual Gratitude: A Photographic Diary.
I fixed the problem, thanks to Rebekah at Fluffy Furries. Go check her out. She always has something interesting to say, and her photography is fantastic! (AND, she knows WP like nobody’s business!!!)
