Inspiration

"My sole purpose in writing . . . has been a private and domestic one . . . I have intended it solely for the pleasure of my relatives and friends so that, when they have lost me. . . they may recover some features of my character and disposition, and thus keep the memory they have of me more completely and vividly alive."

-- Michel de Montaigne, from Essays, 1580

I first heard this in January when I went to hear Gretchen Bernabei, one of my favorite authors (she wrote Reviving the Essay, which I use all of the time with my students, and co-authored Why We Must Run With Scissors with Barry Lane--who I'm going to see in a couple of weeks).

Last week I saw & heard the quote above--and several other great things--when I heard her again at our professional development day (that coincides with elementary parent conference days).

Anyway I've had a running conversation going on with Gretchen since the first time I heard her and even though this was the same workshop, I didn't want to miss the opportunity to hear her again. I've had the opportunity to use her ideas for a few months now, so I was ready for more. Also, she is hilarious and I feel connected to her through her ideas and the joy she gets from teaching kids to think and write.