This is a very BASIC round but so lovely.
I am gathering my resources for camp and hope to use this one.
For this Waldorf Craft Camp starting at our home here on Monday I have the following fun activities planned:

Games with a rope that involve shaping the rope cooperatively and jumping over it,
"Jack be nimble..."
Singing and clapping songs.
Form drawing (read drawing celtic knots) starting with spirals.
Clay with pressed leaves.
Wet on wet watercolor painting.

Bean bag games.
Wool felting colored balls with ribbons which turns them into cool comets.
And a story.

Seeing as how we are doing camp here instead of at school I pray that the Booty girl doesn't get too bent about me being here but not available. I guess it will be as it needs.

We have guests staying on Friday and Saturday night (Jake and Bella Tan) who are doing a Waldorf intro talk. I hope Jake and Bella can bring some light onto the subject as we have so many "talks" and so little actual Waldorf living here. It is a question that lives inside me. Marinating. Well, actually right now I believe it is simmering.

While searching for the perfect fairy tales for our Waldorf Craft campers I discovered the Enchanted Snake from the Green Fairy tale book which starts out:

Once upon a time...
There was once upon a time a poor woman who would have given all she possessed for a child, but she hadn't one.

Now it happened one day that her husband went to the wood to collect brushwood, and when he had brought it home, he discovered a pretty little snake among the twigs.

When Sabatella, for that was the name of the peasant's wife, saw the little beast, she sighed deeply and said, 'Even the snakes have their brood; I alone am unfortunate and have no children.' No sooner had she said these words than, to her intense surprise, the little snake looked up into her face and spoke: 'Since you have no children, be a mother to me instead, and I promise you will never repent it, for I will love you as if I were your own son.'

This made me laugh...

Lately I have come to a realization about why communication can be so difficult.
Not many really want to connect. We have all the tools in the world for "reaching out" but we prefer to sit on our computers and email at a distance. I found myself doing this today. Meeting with parents here to discuss education and to share ideas has become such a challenge because for the most part parents want one thing for themselves and another for their children. I nearly eviscerated myself trying to explain to one mom about how when a group reaches for a goal, it is necessary for everyone in the group to leave their personal desires at the door and focus on the goal, (I was not being subtle I know). I realized the best analogy would be the Goethean conversation but then she accused me of being high and mighty or not transparent enough and could I write it down in a letter for her? Maybe the following essay will help.


“Whence came you hither?” asked the golden king.
“Out of the clefts where the gold dwells,” replied the serpent.
“What is more glorious than gold?”
“Light.”
“What is more quickening than light?”
“Conversation.” From Goethe's Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily

Unless one understands what Goethe meant, one can feel disappointed at the serpent’s answer, which scarcely seems the revelation one expected. For is conversation as we know it in the Twenty First Century really more glorious than gold, more quickening than light? Hardly! We attach the term to every casual exchange, to the most idle, inconsequential chit-chat. Surely, we feel, the term must have come down in the world since Goethe’s day, suffering the severest diminution in its slide.

That this is indeed the case becomes apparent when we recall the salons of earlier centuries where great minds came together for significant talk. These occasions were of a wholly different order from our social happenings. They were disciplined, where ours are chaotic. They were built around a common purpose, mutually enriching rather than depleting. It is impossible to picture the participants in a salon all talking at once, babbling away on as many subjects as there were pairs of conversationalists present. No! Rather, the star of a theme hung over the assemblage as over a pool studded with crystals, and the responsively scintillating crystal intellects took turns voicing the reflections awakened in them.

Goethean conversations differ at least as much again from those of the salon as did the salon from today’s cocktail party. Their purpose is to call forth a fullness of spiritual life, not to stage displays of intellectual fireworks. They have nothing in common with the salon’s formal play of light points sparkling in cold starlit glitter. Instead, they strive to enter the sunward realm of living thoughts where a thinker uses all of himself as a tool of knowledge, where, in the manner of his thinking, he takes part as a creative spirit in the ongoing process of the cosmos.
For more click on
The Art of Goethean Conversation
Marjorie Spock

Red Tent Project:

Hello crafters!
I have just been alerted by my friend over at Solohandmade about a wonderful work in progress to provide much needed supplies to women in Ethiopia. Find details below and let me know if you are interested in helping out. I am putting this out because I don't think it is ANYTHING to be ashamed about but something natural and worthy of attention and HELP.

Written by a mom who also adopted from Ethiopia:

Our agency felt burdened by the young girls’ overwhelming need for sanitary pads in Ethiopia. I don’t think I need to explain what a HUGE problem this is. Many girls are considered “unclean” for a week each month and are unable to go to school or work. Here are some facts:

Ordinary woman are unable to afford basic sanitary protection.
One pack of sanitary pads costs more than 50% of the average monthly wage for women.

Millions of African women are forced to replace tampons/pads with newspapers and dirty rags.

This can lead to infections for which there may not be available medication. These infections are often mistaken to be STDs leading to social embarrassment and in some cases, domestic violence.

Wives and mothers are unable to work when they have their periods, further hindering already impoverished families.

Girls are forced to take time off school, further jeopardizing their education.

Because of the economic and cultural crises in Ethiopia, its schools serve as more than academic centers. They provide community resources where young people receive basic care and services, such as food programs, clean water and counseling.


We are currently working on a project to provide the girls at our agency’s transition home with reusable menstrual pads. We are starting with the older girls first. There are about 30 girls who need the pads and we’d like to send 3 of the outer envelopes and 6 of the inner pads to each girl – so we’ll need 90 envelopes and almost 200 pads!

Here is where I need your help…I don’t know a thing about sewing, but I am very passionate about this cause. I am calling all my friends (adoption-related or not) to consider helping these young women have a safe way to protect themselves each month.

If you are interested, I will send you the pattern and a photo of the pads. I have been told that they are fairly simple to make.

We had several meltdowns today. But they were good ones. That is, an indication of how tired the girl really was.
Typically, whenever we leave a friends house or when friends leave ours, Booty says, "Ohhhh, I am so sad! I miss my friends!" Well today after we left Nikki and Loewen Gardens ( w/singing duo Mark and Ruben and the trampoline) she said, " Next time I want to stay with my friends FOREVER!" and she meant it. She really gets a lot from being with other children. In fact, I encourage her being with "naughty" children too. She doesn't actually care if the children can't share or they go on and on about the "stuff" they have. She likes everyone. And luckily, most of her friends are peaceful sorts. Henry is the picture of peace. The guy runs around his house primavera and everyone is great with it. Booty doesn't even notice. I think Booty expresses my feelings exactly. Life is so rich because of our friends!!!

D and her daughters met us at Jacob Ballas yesterday and it was hot but a very nice time for all. We had scheduled it for the day before but I had to switch at the last minute because of a forgotten engagement with my superstar Dr.Lakshmi. Lucky for us it was a good move. On Wednesday it rained so hard for two hours in the morning that there was severe flooding in the Orchard Road area. It looked like India! So instead we had a hot but relatively dry afternoon marveling at dragonflies, trees, vines of fruiting plants and unsupervised children throwing rocks.

As usual, the company was superb. I couldn't have chosen a more amiable and peaceful group. And Booty loves the girls so! If I am lucky I will be teaching them one day a week in the fall.

I just withdrew my proposal for the extended day program at the school. With the admin. responsibilities and a whole mess of other "new" pursuits I really don't have the energy to renegotiate a program (the board came back with issues )that was going to be a real stretch for me as it is. I guess part of my problem is I want to teach so badly that I am compromising myself and I know it. But I am sad too. As I feel there is something happening in this community that keeps it from saying "YES!"

Trying to navigate the bureaucracy of Singapore's MOM (Ministry of Manpower) has been quite maddening. I have spent hours just trying to cancel a work permit to no avail.

And now we are trying to get a PIO card for me and a COI card for Booty. Lots of paperwork which we retained from our last effort thank goodness.

And a big

THANK YOU to Dr. Lakshmi who is staying here and doing wonderful work with every person who walks through the door.
We are so lucky to have her here. She saw the H this morning and he walked downstairs with a big smile on his face and I know there was a good session that took place between them. What blessings!!!

This week we had some new friends over for a lovely, relaxed afternoon. The back of Davina is shown here as she watches Booty who is "waiting for a bag-ride". Her daughters Sophia and Olivia painstakingly sculpt many bread dough figures in between playing with the little energy girl. Davina's girls have been home-schooled for the past two years and their ability to work with what they have is quite impressive. I have never met such independent and content spirits. But also it must be noted that their mum is someone I would describe as angelic, in the classic sense. Light seems to surround her.



I continue to marvel at the book, Secret History of the World by Jonathan Black published by Quercus in 2008. Below are some brief passages.

After a mention of ancient man's view of 'biorhythms" (the relationship between the earth and the moon, sun and seasons) he proceeds-
"But beyond these more obvious rhythms, the ancients recognized how other, more mathematically complex rhythms that involve the outer reaches of the cosmos work their way into human life. Humans breathe on average 25,920 times per day, which is the number of years in a great Platonic year ( i.e. the number of years it takes for the sun to complete a full cycle of the zodiac). The average or 'ideal' human life, seventy two years also has the same number of days in it."

Also deeply affecting:
"We saw earlier that gods, angels and spirits were believed to be emanations from the great cosmic mind- Thought Beings in other words. What I am asking you to consider now is that these great Thought-Beings expressed themselves through people. If today we naturally think of people thinking, in ancient times they thought of Thoughts peopling."

Thoughts peopling.

A good remedy for birthday anxiety is a long and strenuous walk. We took one to Clark Quay, which is a bit commercial especially with the canal tour. But Booty enjoyed the walk and boat ride and frankly, we were just glad to get out of the house.

Beeswax fruit anyone?

I know it may seem weird after all the regular ranting and raving that happens here in this blog but let me just say,
I LOVE MY MACBOOK PRO.
I mean, (to steal from Woody Allen) I don't just love it, I lowwwb it, I Laaaaave it!
There are all these ways of organizing things. And tweeking. And making things easy! This I need. Especially now.

Open House at the school was very busy. I ended up staying in the bread baking room to help out and never got the chance to mingle downstairs or purchase Waldorfy items. It was nice to chat with some new families who are considering Waldorf.

Of course the visiting dads were all, "Will my child know the quadradic equation by the time they graduate Kindergarten?" and we, the crazy Anthropops were all, "Oh No!!! All we ever do is sheer sheep and spin wool and don't you know books are the devil's work!?" but luckily some Waldorf graduates were present and they sort of calmed everyone down by saying stuff like, "Really! You people act like you never met before. Please let me introduce you, again..." so esoteric. (Please forgive me for joking like this. It must be done.)

But I AM a hopeless salesperson. My attitude has got to change. I really do understand that Waldorf education isn't for everyone. I just don't understand why.

I was recently accused (or so it felt) of being high and mighty, that is, someone told me, "Do you think your family or the world owe you something?" And my response is, yes. They owe me the privilege of belonging. When I am in pain I don't want to be told to "suck it up", do you? I want to be held. If not literally, figuratively. But the liability of growing up in New England (a place I will always love) is a sort of rugged individualism. Get on with it! So here I am. And here I go. Getting on with it.

It is snail season again. Time for me to gaze lovingly and in awe of these steadfast creatures.

We went to the hospital (Raffles) today for day surgery, (routine stuff for the H) and both my husband and I marvelled at the tendency of doctors here to wildly prescribe, prescribe, Prescribe! And the things they say! They speak as if the body is made up of independently moving parts.

This Saturday is Open Day at the Waldorf Kinder. Lots of games and food and crafty items. I haven't lifted a finger. It is my last chance to slack before I become a Waldorf Kinder parent. And when you become a PARENT of a Waldorf student it is all work, work, work! So here I am, barely employed shirking my duty as the new Administrator for the school. Truth is, I am totally over my head taking on this job. I am going to have to learn a lot in the next few months- web design, graphic design, and the detestable excel to name a few things. If you know anything about html please write to me.


Turtle loaf (the one with all the bumpies) and snail bread by mom and booty.

Lots of things on my mind. Reading "The Secret History of the World" by Jonathan Black. Pondering the 10 suicides at the factory in China (and the increase in attacks on schoolchildren in China). The 4th Japanese prime minister to resign in 4 years. The Thai rebellion. And the BP oil spill. Like everyone, I have questions but I feel it is important where I try to find the answers. I don't think companies like Goldman Sachs can act ethically without incentives. And I don't think I can reasonably understand other cultures without putting the lens of my own culture over my eyes. What am I doing here if not to learn something about how to understand the world?

New Projects:

ABC book for Waldorf homeschoolers and people who want to see what first graders do with letters.
An extended day program at the kindergarten for multi-age group.
Craft camp next month for five days.
Waldorf Administrator for the Waldorf Steiner Education Association (Singapore).
Public Talk series with once a month talk on element of Waldorf Education.
Enrichment Program on Saturdays for children 6-11 (ongoing)
Craft parent education (pay per class)

Rachel Maddow is on fire. She was sounding to me a little like a serious, female version of Jon Stewart. This video is long but I think interesting because she talks about how a US Senate candidate for Kentucky (Rand Paul) has struck the tuning fork for racism in America. I agree.

The sun woke me up this morning, (not the cats or the girl). It was nice.
We rode the bikes (and burley) to get coffee and bagels then to the big playground we just discovered in our neighborhood. Booty likes the adult section better than the children's section, so we hung out there checking out the exercise equipment. Next door there is a croquet court and it is always busy with local people playing. Today there was a tournament. You could hear them calling out after shots, "Ahhhh!" or sometimes they sneak in a little english, "You never see that ball!". On our way to unlock the bikes we came upon the familiar site of the Filipino aunties sitting with their employer's dogs. The dogs were leashed to the children's climbing structure and when I tried to say hi to one little Jack Russel he bit me. I couldn't explain to the woman that dogs bite when they are leashed too much and not walked enough. Oh well. Some doggies are like this also.

Last week we went to my friend Nikki's house in the center of town. She has two shelter dogs. Both are more gentle than most dogs I know. George, the shepherd mix ambled up to the gate when we arrived, sniffed and wagged his tail. Very gentle and lovely. The entire visit was filled with sweet dog sniffs and one gentle and tender dog lick from Sidney. It made me long for doggie love. Some dogs are like THIS also.

Starting a new project of alphabet book, in the first grade Waldorf main lesson book style. See "A" above.

Last night I went on skype and was able to see, and be seen by, my friend in Chicago. My new MacBook has a built in video camera. What a treat. Not alone! Not Alone!!

This morning I went to a learning center called Julia Gabriel downtown Singapore. It is a hugely successful business for families who want their children to be more expressive and interactive with their learning. It runs mostly on the weekends and each class for children ages 2-18 lasts for one to one and a half hours. It reminded me of the way I taught public school in Chicago. The teachers are real lovers of learning and of children. Unfortunately for me it would be a step back from what I really believe in, which is letting children experience their own development through the body and the arts before the intellect is tapped. It seems that the children were enjoying themselves in the small classroom but my perspective is that they are pushed too far into what we call "parts thinking" and not so much into the gesture of language- the sounds and their meanings, the numbers and their relationship to the whole world. Just because you can read doesn't mean you have a healthy, balanced relationship to language. And this creates thinkers that are not able or willing to solve big problems. Just small ones. Which may lead to problems in the big world.

Imagine you have dry lips and they are so chapped nothing you put on them helps but the doctors decide to give you a special cream with hormones to solve your problem. The cream causes more serious problems and your original problem was only dehydration. Why don't we treat illness like whole body illness? Why can't we educate the whole child?

What Singapore needs is sensory integration schooling. The children need to feel their bodies (clay, tumbling on a mat, art, singing, marching, climbing etc.) and feel themselves in the world as important and loved. Not like little students with their portfolios.

Singapore just earned the title "most competitive nation". How dreadful.

Whatcha readin"?

Right now I am reading "The Story of Forgetting" by Stefan Merrill Block and "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell. Having already read, "What the dog saw", "The Tipping Point" and "Outliers" I figured I should read the best seller. I like Malcolm Gladwell's work.

Movies?

Watched Douglas Fairbanks' "Thief of Bagdad" last week and LOVED it, which surprised me because it is a silent movie. But it includes a magic rope, magic carpet, white winged horse, mermaids, a dragon, a very excellent evil khan Mongal, and lots more.
And last night "Grapes of Wrath" a John Ford adaptation of Steinbeck's novel.
the cast is phenomenal (Henry Fonda!!!) and the screenplay excellent.

For the last few weeks we have had a Filipino Eurythmist stay with us, Grace. She is so warm and fun to talk to. Booty loves having the company. And Mr.D is doing some therapy with her which is really great! Selamat Grace! (Thank you in Filipino)

Girl. How I feel too!

I am grateful for:

My beautiful daughter, my lovely house, my helpful live-in maid, my strong body, my loving heart, my Guru, Rudolf Steiner, my friends and family altho' they seem like a dream from a long ago time, my cats when they aren't waking me up, my husband who hasn't quite given up on me yet (I hope), and the divine light that keeps me optimistic despite my feelings of hopelessness.

That which makes me feel crazy and finished:

Many things...
but I know this too will pass.

When I went to long Kreeya today (breathing meditation with Art of Living fellows) I was followed into the building by a short old man with a beard and a fez. He asked me a question which I didn't understand as I pressed the elevator button. He seemed lost. He pointed up and I said, "Art of Living meditation" which he didn't understand but as I had put my hand gently on his shoulder he put his hand on my waist and then before I knew it he was patting my butt. I (again) gently pulled his hand away. And as the empty elevator door opened I quickly asked myself if I could hold my own with this guy, yes. I waved him in first. I wasn't going to fall for that again. As we rode up he asked his question again and again I didn't understand so again (he he) I said, "Art of Living meditation". "Meditation!" he smiled and I got off the elevator.

My friend at meditation seemed shocked to see my short hair. I cut it again last week. It is funny how differently people from the east react to short hair on women. Why did you do it???!!! Like there was some sort of drastic reason. I like my hair super short. I am also aware that I look very masculine with short hair so I try to wear make up and dress a little nicer. But I certainly didn't cut my hair to shock or offend anyone. People from the US and from Europe don't seem to be affected by it. I know I am generalizing but I had short hair in Chicago for many years and it was never an issue. Well, except for my mum. She does not like it short.

Why is it so hard to find lumber!
Or a play structure/frame for the booty!
I have been searching online for hours and failed to find plywood to build something (like a climbing wall for the girl) or a wooden play structure like this (by Plum in the UK) for our back yard.