Gratitude – Page 3 – The Future is Open

October 27, 2016

Open and openness are the keys to life and living

A few days ago I wrote a short piece on Facebook and in it I reflected on my anxiety of a few years ago when I retired from public education. I was certain then that my future was bleak. At the time my son said to me, “with your skill set you’re sure to excel.” I was not so sure, but what I’ve discovered in the past three years is that while my skill set is important, even more important is my mindset. Years ago I learned that honesty, open mindedness and willingness were keys to a happy life. Those three simple concepts have been the key to my life. I’m talking about being honest with myself. Taking a good hard look at what I have to offer and not assuming that because of my age and experience that I have nothing more to learn. Quite the opposite in fact. Approaching life with an open mind is key to not only success but also to contentment and longevity. In Chapter 76 of the Tao te Ching this life giving principle is stated succinctly.

The living are soft and yielding;
the dead are rigid and stiff.
Living plants are flexible and tender;
the dead are brittle and dry.

Those who are stiff and rigid
are the disciples of death.
Those who are soft and yielding
are the disciples of life.

The rigid and stiff will be broken.
The soft and yielding will overcome.

Therefore if you seek a long and happy life look to be open and willing. Openness and willingness point to growth. Embrace new ideas and learning. This mindset will keep your mind, soul and body in good health.

October 22, 2016

Is this Science because I’m failing this in school

This year I got a great opportunity to work with a unique group of students in an after school program at St. Bonaventure University. I am fortunate to work with Dr. Anne Foerst, a computer science professor at St. Bonaventure. Together we applied for and received a grant from National Grid to teach STEM to a group of middle school girls who applied to our program from area school districts. Inspired by my mother’s struggles to break the glass ceiling and reach out to girls who are an underrepresented group in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

My Mom graduated from D’Youville College in Buffalo magna cum laude in 1947 majoring in science and mathematics. She returned to her native New York City and applied for teaching jobs but was told she couldn’t get one because she was a woman. Then Mom went on to get her Masters in Mathematics and Science at Fordham University. Mom worked her way through Fordham as a graduate assistant. She eventually returned to Buffalo and got a teaching job at D’Youville College. I told Mom recently that she was part of my inspiration for getting involved with our efforts to promote STEM skills to these girls at St. Bonaventure.

I spent the summer learning how to work with and program Lego Mindstorms EV3 robots. Our grant enabled us to purchase seven complete kits and to invite fourteen girls to the St. Bonaventure campus for a two-hour class that meets once every three weeks. We’ve been meeting since late August with these girls and they are making great progress. I’ve seen them blossom as learners and leaders and they come to our sessions with a great enthusiasm for learning. At this week’s class we taught the girls how to program the color sensor. One the girls solved a problem I hadn’t assigned but by doing so showed great insight and application. She was clearly operating at the higher levels of Blooms Taxonomy. I asked her about her thinking and application and how she arrived at this unique solution to the problem. She replied, “I figured it out last time by just tinkering.” Then she said, “Is this science, because i’m failing science in school.” Dr. Foerst said, “This isn’t science, this is FUN.” It was a poignant moment and it really warmed my heart because this girl now knows she is a scientist and a successful one too.

September 19, 2016

What would I tell my younger self?

Five years ago I could never have imagined how I spend my life these days. I retired from public education three years ago. That was frightening at the time. What would I do I thought. How should I re-invent myself. There was a lot of angst. Since then, I’ve found new life as a volunteer in a soup kitchen and a food pantry. I’ve become a prolific writer. I’ve learned to program robots, write Python code, and teach others to do the same. Recently I began helping local authors get published using Lulu.com. I gratefully reflect on the direction of my life. It is anything but dull. I’m far from retired. I’ve merely changed direction. In retrospect I’d tell my younger self to “be open.” Openness, humility and serendipity are keys to a happy life.

April 3, 2016

Brothers and Sisters Among Us

Last week on Thursday I had business at the Prendergast Library in Jamestown, New York. I was there for a meeting and after a fifty-mile ride I stopped in the library’s lavatory to refresh myself. While I was there a fellow came into the same space and he looked unkempt, smelled like he hadn’t had a bath in a while and took some half-gallon plastic containers our of his knapsack and filled them in the sink. Here was a homeless person, the likes of which most of us don’t see but who do exist in our midst. I felt uncomfortable but what could I do to help this guy. I realized then the library was more than a place to fill your mind with information but it could also be a place to fill your canteen as it were with water. I wondered too, how many others like this fellow come to the library daily or weekly to fill up their jugs too. I’m glad the library can be a point of nurture for this guy.

November 18, 2015

There are lots of great people in the world – We don’t hear about them enough!

I just got home from spending a few hours volunteering at the Catholic Charities Food Pantry in Franklinville, New York. Earlier this week, Paul Goodhand, local director of the pantry called and asked if I could volunteer today. I got to the pantry about 9:15 am and was greeted by many other volunteers all of whom come from our community and the surrounding towns. At 9:30 am the doors of the pantry opened and the clients who had signed up for a turkey and a box of groceries which included squash, apples, and other vegetables and canned good began to arrive. My job was to help carry these items to their cars or their apartments for those who lived nearby. I was very moved as we filled these orders and helped to bring a bright spot to the lives of those less fortunate.

We distributed fifty turkeys today and also some large roasting chickens along with boxes of fresh vegetables and canned pumpkin and more. One of the staff told me that the West Valley Demonstration Project had donated a total of three-hundred-sixty turkeys and nine tons of groceries that made this possible to the Catholic Charities of Western New York. The money to provide this wonderul gift came from a fund raiser at their work-site. This is a great story of compassion and empathy for the poor and less fortunate.

November 9, 2015

EdCamp is a learning opportunity you cannot afford to miss

Saturday I attended my second EdCamp in the last two months. I learned some new things as a result. Furthermore I’m inspired by the teachers and administrators whom I met there. There was an eagerness to learn and share that’s frequently missing at formal conferences. In fact at most educational conferences that I’ve either attended or presented at, the flow of information is typically one way. It’s presenter to attendee. But at EdCamps the flow of information and expertise for that matter comes from all the participants. There is a sense of excitement that’s palpable, enthusiastic and authentic. The people who are drawn to EdCamps come from near and far. They come on their own time because they sincerely want to learn and grow professionally.

I’m energized by the grass roots nature of EdCamp. I spoke with Katie McFarland the organizer of EdCampFLX which I attended on Saturday and she said they had received a mini-grant from the EdCamp Foundation to assist with the program. The rest of the snacks, refreshments and prizes were donated. I’m encouraging other retired educators to get involved with EdCamp because you might be surprised by what you learn and maybe even what you can share. Saturday I came to share on open source and open educational resources and while those sessions were productive I learned about Smore.com which I’m going to use myself and I’ve already shared it with my learning networks. I also taught a group of teachers how to create and use Twitter lists. I’m indebted to Christina Luce who first shared about EdCamp and whose enthusiasm for the movement invited my involvement. I’m looking forward to attending more EdCamps in the future and especially the one at Maine-Endwell in the April 9, 2016.

November 7, 2015

Happy Birthday Mom

Today is my mother’s 89th birthday. I often reflect gratefully for her presence in my life. It was she who gave me life. What a wonderful gift she has been in my life and in the lives of my brothers and sisters. Mom was born into a world that had not experienced the great depression yet. Life was never easy for her. She lost her father at four and spent her formative years living with my uncle and aunt. There were seven of them under one roof. In the days prior to social insurance situations like theirs were more common. Despite growing up with a single mom who had to work everyday in the court system of the City of New York my Mom managed to excel at home and in school. She graduated with honors and was awarded a scholarship to D’Youville College in Buffalo, New York where she moved in the fall of 1944. I’ve often thought of the rigors involved with going to college over four-hundred miles from your birth. In those days the only practical way from New York City to Buffalo was on the New York Central (now Amtrak).

She not only made that trip but met her professors and classmates and excelled like she did in every aspect of her life. She graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1947 with a major in Mathematics. She returned to New York City and enrolled in Fordham University where she earned a Masters in Mathematics a year later. She eventually returned to Buffalo in 1949 and began teaching Mathematics at D’Youville College. Like her mom, she was a trailblazing woman who faced a lot of adversity but she mastered it. Soon after that she met my father and they were married in 1951. After he graduated from dental school in 1952, she put her own career on hold as my brother and I arrived and six years later my sister. While caring for us she worked at my father’s side in his professional office and when his health declined and he eventually died she returned to the classroom to provide for us. Only rarely have I ever heard her complain about her life. In past few months she’s relocated all the way across the country and she’s been amazingly resilient with that transition too. Words are insufficient to convey the love and affection I have for her. I’ll just be content to wish her a happy birthday this day and hope for many more.

November 1, 2015

All are welcome in this place

Today is the Feast of All Saints and it was a beautiful feast at that. The sun shone brightly and the temperature was a modest fifty degrees Fahrenheit which is a gift even in the first week of November in Western New York State. My wife said she wanted to accompany me to Mass at Mt. Irenaeus today. Diane doesn’t always go so it was a gift to have her in the car on our way to the Mountain as we call it. We rode along stopping briefly in the village of Cuba, New York and then on through Friendship and Nile and up the road to our destination. We stopped at the House of Peace to drop off the goodies Diane had prepared and then up the trail to Holy Peace Chapel we strode. As we walked we met others who were joining us for today’s liturgy. Those who come to the Mass each week are part of the Mount Irenaeus community and what a diverse community it is with college students from nearby Houghton College along with students from St. Bonaventure University. Then there are the resident friar community and people like Diane and I who journeyed here today. Today all of us gathered in the chapel were saints and that is what Fr. Dan Riley, OFM invited us to be in his homily. Diane and I have been coming here for over fifteen years now. We know most of the regulars and many of the students. Mount Irenaeus is less like church and more like community and that is what I dare say most of us come regardless or our age. Lyrics that we often begin our celebration with continue to resonate and describe this place.

Let us build a house where love is found
In water, wine and wheat:
A banquet hall on holy ground,
Where peace and justice meet.

Here the love of God, through Jesus,
Is revealed in time and space;
As we share in Christ the feast that frees us:

All are welcome, all are welcome,
All are welcome in this place. – Marty Haugen – All Are Welcome

October 20, 2015

Glad to be a part of Opensource.com

A year ago I came to All Things Open at the invitation of Jason Hibbets who was the community manager of Opensource.com. At the time I was thrilled to be invited and so I came to the conference with some expectations but not really knowing what was in store for me. I met people like Jason, Rikki Endsley, Phil Shapiro and Jeff Mackanic. I remember how Jeff repeatedly thanked me for coming and how good that made me feel at the time. I decided a year ago that I wanted to come back here because I learned so much at the conference and met so many wonderful people who made me feel so good about being here.

In December of last year Phil Shapiro suggested that I tell Jason that I was interested in the Community Moderator program. I felt a bit reticent because I doubted my own credentials and qualifications but I did follow his suggestion. Jason was happy to welcome me on board and in January I officially joined the team. Since that time I’ve met other members of the group including Jen Wike Huger, Bryan Behrenhausen, Alex Sanchez and many more. In the past ten months I written over thirty articles about a variety of topics. Some articles came from my own experience with Linux and open source software. Others like interviews were new to me. In the process I got to meet a number very interesting people and to learn about aspects of open source that I would not otherwise have explored on my own. Today for example I had a chance at this year’s All Things Open Conference to meet Harper Reed who I interviewed a month ago. Also today I got to meet Frank Karlitschek who developed OwnCloud and another of my interviewees. My colleagues have helped me to grow professionally as a writer and as a person too. They’ve both challenged and encouraged me and I’m excited to be involved. I recently told Robin Muilwijk that he and the others in our group had been the wind beneath my wings.

In the past couple of days I’ve gained unique insights into being part of an open organization and today we all shared lunch and an open discussion of “The Open Organization” with it’s author, Jim Whitehurst who is the CEO of Red Hat. What a thrill to be sitting in the Red Hat Board Room with my colleagues other members of the Red Hat team. There’s still one more day of this years conference and I’m looking forward to it. I’m also looking forward to continuing this wonderful journey with Opensource.com.