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Spring in the bush
Oct 8, 2007

Spring is wandering in slowly and quitely
as though not quite sure it is in the right place
gentle steady rains are falling
in between bursts of sunshine
that leave the bark on the Ents
a warm dark red
while the leaves sparkle like green diamonds in the sun
winds hurry through on there way to the Forrests from the farmers fiels of hay
and a thoudands prisims of water are tossed to the ground from the branches above
birds dart from branch to branch collecting seeds and nectar dodging drops like so many flying aces under fire
Sounds of children's laughter drift out to where I sit
book in hand
steaming drink at my side
silently comes spring
upon waves of jamsmine, peach blossom, jonquill and wattle
silently comes spring
and with it comes contentment and peace
and a knowledge that all is right with my universe

(3 replies, Latest reply: Jan 23, 2008)

Risk and exams
Jun 12, 2007

Well today is my exam for my first unit at University and I have not heard back from the Disability officer as to whether or not I will be allowed to take in my lap top or if I can even take in blue paper or a spell check machine.....

Speaking to the vice chancellor yesterday I was excited by his open mind and his vision of what a university could be, however the problem is what the university is today.....

If a will agree to wear the label of disabled person I can have any number of accomodations that will make life easy for me and everyone from my counselling supervisor through to my accademis advisdor has said Hayley it's no big deal and it will make life easier for you....

But it is a big deal to me having gone through much of my life believing I was stupid and less than everyone around me only to discover at the grand old age of 39..... actually I am not I simply process information in a different fashion ....I learn differently to 80% of the popoulation however when I do learn something its in there for life,usually having made connectins to others areas most people don't at the same time....

To turn around and say yes that makes me disabled would be a lie ....it doesn't it puts me at a disadvantage in a system that only recognises one way to learn but it doesn't make me disabled and I can not afford to wear that label and start to think of myself like that again to take on a fale identity.

So I am going to take a huge risk today I am six points short of passing the unit even though I got a credit on one assignment and a pass on the other with three ticks whatever that means...I am going to write the test the way that is best for a
global visualspatial-experientialkinesthetic learner instead of trying to write one like a linear linguistic-mathematicallogical learner ...which means I will probably fail however it will be an honest fail.....

In the mean time I will to use the vice chancellors words beaver away at getting them to change their thinking.... that accomodations shouldn't be given soley on the basis of a disability but also where those within the system are at a disadvantage where they will reasonably increase that persons ability to do their best work in a system that is contrary to their schema. If a laptop with a word processing program will help someone with poor grammer,spelling,punctuation produce an essay that is readable why shouldn't they be allowed to use one...If A person thinks in pictures and can draw a diagram that depicts Muirheads model of community as effectively as four paragraphs of written work why shouldn't they....If I can verbally answer questions better than writing them why shouldn't I be given that option. Why not allow people to simply tell you what they have learned not what they haven't in an exam.....

We MI Learners are not inferior nor disabled we are simply different :

Faraday
Einstein
Tessler
Branson
Juggins
Poincare
Cox
Goldberg
Poitier
Hamilton
Ayers
Findlay and the list goes on and on and on.................

(1 reply, Latest reply: Jun 12, 2007)

thimking out loud
Apr 19, 2007

Yet another terrible event has occured somewhere in the world and I read the comments that acknowledge this and then move on to other topics....we acknowledge the event and make a comment and then continue on with our lives.....and I can't help wondering if there isn't something gravely wrong with us that we can do this.....it's not reasonable to shut down and cease to function I know but should we be able to resume our lives so easily when we hear of the horror that happens to those around us....I wonder at myself an my inability to even empathise or even want to put myself in their place....yet last night I was almost in tears as I listenend to anothers pain on the phone and the only differnece was I know this person where as the others I don't.

The news serves up all the latest of humanities cruleties towards each other and we sit and shake our heads and say how awful or maybe we send some money or say a prayer and then continue on is this all we can do...is it all we should do.....


Do others wonder where this will end ......how removed will we end up from those around us...... will we only feel if it touches us directly eventually...... will all the images eventually disable us completely.....

This morning I watched the end of a show and I was saddened by the fact I wont get to see the lives of these fictional charaters anymore who for the last seven years have been a part of my viewing each week....people that don't even exsist have been able to create a response in me that the tradegy of the lives of these real people on the news couldn't....what does that say about me

My friend has just rung to ask if she can come and I am glad because I have a chance to help make her life a little better by making tea for her and giving her home made cake....and i am wondering is that enough...if we simply try to help those closest to us..will that help....

If we all try to make things a little better for the people closest to us will that help...will it be enough to stop the loss of feeling....

(17 replies, Latest reply: Apr 21, 2007)

Change
Apr 3, 2007

Five weeks ago the start of the year looked fairly preaceful even a trifle boring...... then somewhere along the way someone decided to pop open the bonet of my life and tinker with the engine and now its reving at 200 plus an hour....

Okay so that someone was me but I didn't mean to convert it quite this much

I suddenly find myself trying to balance family, work, uni and two of the communities I belong to all at the same time and I am just not very good at juggling

When I am through this period I know I will have learn't soo much I always do.... it seems to be the nature of how I learn best .... under pressure..... resources stretched to the max .....
Yet it is not an enjoyable process.

I look out my window and stare at the bush ....

Thank God that I now have two weeks at home just to sit and be....
This is said not as a flipant aside but as a heartfelt need

I promise myself that I will not complicate my life in any way other than to play with the children and plant things in the garden.

The maggies have just started warbling and their songs are soothing my ruffled soul and lifting my spirit the day smells of damp earth and I can hear the honey bees buzzing already .....

Remind me Lord just to stop and be still and to really see and hear all around me .....

When I do my spirit becomes peaceful and my anxiousness falls away
Once again I am able to pick up the various threads of my life with a renewed sense of calling and direction and begin to weave again the pattern that is the fabric of my life carefully and with attention to detail ...

Make my life like the rugs of old a work of art carefully and painstakingly put together.

(28 replies, Latest reply: Apr 5, 2007)

Week Three
Mar 14, 2007

It's now 5.00 am and if I am lucky the small ones who inhabit the house will sleep another hour maybe two and I who have worked straight through the night writing my first essay may get a couple of hours sleep if I can switch off my mind long enough. How it happened I am not too sure for when I sat down my mind was a complete blank and then somewhere along the way ideas came and words flowed and before I knew it my husband appeared saying would you like a coffee and then the rooster started crowing and the cows next door started to make their presence felt. Not sure if it's any good but at least it's a start and it feels much better than a couple of days ago. Yes I think there is a chance I can do this after all.

(11 replies, Latest reply: Mar 20, 2007)