Day 110 of AY20-21: stumbling into learning

March 28th was Day 110 of the pandacademic year, and it was the final day of our first week of cycle 8. We had a good week up to that point, although Learners being out due to quarantines and the fixation on seeking out destinations that we could spend money on food instead of engaging in social justice oriented activities was frustrating. But those struggles were outweighed by the positives of being together in the city again, with plenty of sun and good weather, lots of walking, and a some really great conversations.

The day was supposed to be a biking day for some, but the Learners who were going to bring bikes forgot to bring them, so Facilitator Ariel threw his bike in Antonio’s vehicle and we went into the morning meeting. A Learner and Facilitator Ariel both threw out prompts for the morning meeting. For the first prompt we each described a fruit without saying what its name was, while the rest of us tried to guess what it was. The fruits were green apple, grape, banana, tomato, and honeydew. What was really great about that prompt/game was that each of us successfully guessed one of the fruits.

Because it was Friday we went into our Check-in and Change-up meetings after the morning meeting. Three folks raised a total of six awarenesses in the Check-in, and during the Change-up we selected five that we wanted to focus on for the coming week. We keep the number of awarenesses that we put on the Community Awareness Board limited to five so that we can keep each one top of mind as we work toward shifting our culture, because if we had too many awarenesses we would become overwhelmed. The awarenesses included people ruminating on food/treats; dehydration; mindfulness about ourselves, nature, and the environment; taking into account the needs of others; and making assumptions about what others know. For each of the five awarenesses we came up with two or three practices that we would try out for a week to see if we could address the awarenesses we raised.

After the morning meeting we set off. We agreed to hit some food places on our way to the little green spot next to a pond that we found the day prior. I agreed to stop at a food truck so a younger Learner could get some Thai ice cream while the rest of the crew went to a corner store (coffee) and a fast food place (milkshake). When I got to the food truck with the younger Learner we found that it was closed, and according to the sign they would be closed for an hour. The Learner took it in stride and asked to go to a food truck that sold gelato, but we found that closed, as well. The Learner really wanted ice cream so I looked for nearby places that sold ice cream and we finally found one on South Lamar, but it was a 15 minute walk and uphill. He said that he wanted to do that, so I checked in with the others and asked them if it was okay to meet them at the park after we went to the ice cream shop. They said that would be fine, and we trekked to the shop.

When we arrived at the shop we took our time going through the options and debating how many scoops and toppings would feel good. As he was deciding I was surprised to see the rest of the crew come on scene. They set up in a sally port next to the shop, and began to eat lunch or snacks. When the ice cream was delivered I broke out my lunch to eat. Then we all began talking about a wide variety of topics, and we made time to take a bunch of pictures in front of the two murals painted on each side of the sally port.

Once the pictures were taken and everyone’s stomachs were filled we decided to make our way to our destination, but in looking at the map we thought we would see if we could find our way across a small stream and train tracks into the greenbelt so that we could avoid the sound and exhaust of cars during our walk. We were thrilled that no fences were in our way as we carefully walked across the place where the water flows and then across the place where the trains roll. We checked to make sure that no trains were coming and took a quick shot of the crew on the tracks. It could have been an album cover it was so good.

After crossing over the tracks we made our way down into the greenbelt where we followed a variety of trails that led us to West Bouldin Creek. Along our walk we saw a tree that had split and fallen but got caught up by branches to form perpendicular angles. The most amazing thing about the tree was that it was still alive, and the branches of the tree were budding. We guessed that it was a quite recent break, and most likely happened during the deep freeze that Austin experienced in mid-February. The weight of the ice that coated the trees brought down many trees in the area. It was a beautiful area that we walked through, and it would be worth coming back to in the future.

Also in the greenbelt we stumbled upon some tents. One of the Learners wanted to walk toward the tents to see what was happening, but Facilitator Ariel talked to the Learners about the importance of not making a lot of noise and steering clear of the tents for purposes of privacy for the people who were living there. That led to a discussion of public and private spaces, and the different expectations we might hold for others relative to ourselves. When Facilitator Ariel asked if the Learner would feel comfortable if someone was walking through their home looking in their rooms or making a lot of noise the Learner conceded that he would not feel comfortable.

When we finally got to the park we settled in, content in being full and having had had a nice walk through a beautiful green space hidden within the city. Some of the Learners spent time down by the water playing on the edge, watching the turtles scurry away, and watching the ducks float by. One of the Learners took off his shoes and walked in far enough for the water to go halfway up his shins. When he came back out of the water to hang with the rest of the crew we noticed something attached to his leg. It was a leech! Super cool for all, gross for some.

There was some time on the hammock, three of us broke out books to read (two Facilitators and a Learner), and a Learner and I threw the football around. Sadly, due to a lack of communication and poor setup the ball ended up in the lake, and slowly drifted away. In many places along the water there was growth that was deep enough and thick enough to prevent the ball from coming to shore while also preventing us from being able to go in and get it. We thought it was a lost cause.

I then followed a Learner back to the top of a hill that was created to provide a beautiful view of the area. Yesterday we found a large stone map of Texas on there, with a collection of cities or towns and their distance from Austin. On this day, I looked up the population of each of the towns, and then pointed out which larger cities and towns were omitted from the map. While we were up there we watched as a Learner worked the football out of the lake so that we could play with it some more in the future. It was an excellent recovery that allowed us to leave the first week of cycle eight on a high note.

At the other cell there was also a Check-in and Change-up, discussions about what to do when we come into contact with people who do not honor our boundaries, some walking, soccer playing, drone flying, and head-banging to metal music. Also ducks.

Day 109 of AY20-21: a slower day

My commitment to blog about each day of this pandacademic year has taken a real hit lately. Today I am finally getting around to writing about day 109, which was Thursday, March 25th. I hope to catch up soon. It’s just been a pretty busy time recently for me with supporting Learners and families within Abrome, responding to prospective families, and supporting folks doing the good work of liberation outside of Abrome. Plus, the pandemic has certainly wore me down as it has many others. This has been exacerbated by my observation of how people and organizations have thrown in the towel and surrendered to chance instead of prioritizing the health and welfare of others. But we shall fight on.

There is less to talk than usual for Abrome’s day 109, as it was the lowest attendance day we have had in quite a while. One, the cell that was meeting near the lake had to take a remote day, and the Flying Squad cell only had two Learners show up. This was in part because three Learners were still quarantining from the break, and another Learner had planned to take this day off. But slow days are not enough to slow us down.

For the morning meeting the youngest Learner wanted to lead the meeting, and with so few present we were much more flexible with how we would approach the meeting and the day, and we all felt that we could table some of the discussion topics we would have otherwise addressed that morning. For prompts the Learner asked us for our favorite type of sports vehicle, and our favorite type of grass. What we found is that there is not much excitement around sports vehicles in the group, and that bamboo is the favorite type of grass for half of the Abrome crew, as well as giant pandas.

Next we talked about our plans for the day. Both Facilitators expressed a desire to walk a bit and to enjoy some open space and set up the hammock to relax a bit, so we decided to head toward the Long Center to see what that might offer us. Unsurprisingly, the Learners were focused on where they would be able to get food that they were often not able to get at home, and we made plans to stop at a fast food joint and a food truck on our way back to the pickup point at the end of the day.

The weather was glorious, as Facilitator Ariel said, so the walk along the river was particularly nice. Even better, a Learner that had been wearing pants every day decided to follow our advice and wear shorts, which meant that he was able to enjoy the warmer weather instead of having to deal with it. We were thrilled to stumble upon a nice little green patch next to a pond and decided that this was where we were going to set up for a good portion of the day. But first, we took turns running to the bathroom while others watched the backpacks, and then Facilitator Ariel set up the hammock. The hammock was a big hit with the Learners, with each wanting to spend time in it. The hammock also gave us an opportunity to talk about boundaries—the need to ask permission to use someone else’s stuff, masking when close to each other, and when to step back and not engage with someone when they are doing something else (such as answering a phone call).

Facilitator Ariel told a parent of one of the Learners that morning that today might be a good day for light sabers, so one of the Learners brought his light saber, as did Facilitator Ariel. Eventually the light sabers came out and there was a violent battle between the Learners. Fortunately there were no serious injuries had, other than arms that got sliced off and severed arteries.

As we requested a slower day without so many Learners there was also a lot of time sitting and being by ourselves. One Learner found himself down by the pond staring at the birds in the lake, with the skyline of downtown in the distance. Meanwhile, another Learner found himself up a tree and balancing himself well out on a branch that would probably not hold a Learner of a larger size.

We had some challenges on the day, as well. One Learner broke some branches off of a tree and that led to us talking about the Abrome principles: take care of yourself, take care of others, and take care of the space. We talked about whether or not it was appropriate to break branches off of a living tree for the sake of breaking branches, versus having a need for it. Separately, I engaged with a Learner on his need to provide commentary and critique the actions of the other Learner. It seemed that the Learner was trying to establish himself as older and more mature and therefore needing to point out the differences between him and the younger Learner. This allowed us to talk about development and whether or not we should be judging others on age, maturity, or other issues. Finally, there was still a fixation on food for much of the day, even though we committed to going to the food destinations they requested at the end of the day.

But the Facilitators were steadfast in sticking with the original plan, and not going back so early for food that we were left just sitting around waiting for the day to end. With a chunk of time reserved for staying in place, one of the Learners went into discovery mode, and began cloverleafing around our patch of green in the city. Soon he decided to run up a small hill where he found a great view of the city and a representative view of Texas, with select cities all over it. It was a pretty great installation into the city for the public to enjoy, and it would be great if we could find ways to add some context to it so that it included names and history that is not confined to present day Texas.

Having been able to take in the space on this slower day, we packed up and began our trek back to the pickup spot with plans to stop at the food joints along the way. First we hit P. Terry’s where the Learners fell prey to the draw of tasty but not the healthiest of options. Having spent a good amount of money and time there, we then continued our trek to the Thai ice cream food truck we had hit on Monday. This time, though, the Learner who chose to splurge a bit at P. Terry’s did not have the money necessary to get ice cream. It was a great lesson on the limits of money. Meanwhile I keep modeling bringing all my food each day, as a healthier and less expensive alternative to always wanting to prepare food and treats.