last night i got a hankering for those “American boys who sing traditional Cambodian songs”…you know, Muk!  that really was what i searched for on google.  the last time my sister-in-law Phan was in town she introduced us to these guys on youtube.  all night long i was singing “ChampaBattambang.”  take a listen!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=bxLryNfHfgQ]

music can change the atmosphere at your house so quickly.  i was telling Andy that i want to create a list of music and what it does.  here’s a beginning:

• need calm?  try Edgar Meyer.
• need reflection?  try Hildegard or the monks of Keur Moussa.
• need something more upbeat, but still not too distracting (no words in English)?  try Kronos Quartet or Ad Vielle Que Pourra
• then there’s always Bruce 
• or Leonard 
• or The Waterboys
• or REM
• or Renee & Jeremy

a few days ago, i was writing about my experience with ModPo and mentioned something about how important it is to me–as a person, as a mother, as a homeschooler–to always be learning.  it doesn’t always have to be focused or formal, but when i have work to put my hand to, work that calls me to grow + learn, i am more at peace.

Brandy mentioned that she hadn’t yet thought in terms of continuing education.  and that put me in the mind to begin a new way of thinking about some of the resources i share in this space.  lots of what catches my eye can fall under the broad category of continuing education or professional development.  now when i share these ideas + books, i’ll file them under the heading

learning all the time.

so.  our first link!  AP of my heart found an On Being episode where Phil Donahue was interviewed.  when i was in high school, i watched his show every afternoon.  i loved hearing about his childhood and his reflections on his own work as a parent.  on the show’s page, there was a link to other shows in the same vein.  one was an interview with poet Marie Howe.  so i put her book The Kingdom of Ordinary Time on hold and loaded the (long, unedited) interview onto my phone.  she, too, has wonderfully vivid childhood memories and relationships.  and she has a poet’s ability to say things in terribly interesting ways.  she said that since she was a child,  she has been drawn to the “part we can’t see, the world inside the world.”  just those simple phrases were enough to set my mind happily humming.

and that really is my vision for this new series: sharing things that shed light, things that grow us up, things that help.

edited to add–i took the name for this series from John Holt’s last book.  it’s a collection of stories of children learning early math and reading.  if you are new to John Holt, i’d recommend starting with Teach Your Own or Never Too Late or just checking out my ever growing collection of GWS quotes!