A Time Capsule from 1985

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1985, Lake Ridge, memoir, Tackett's Mill Center, Time Capsule, Virginia

The Capstone

I could be writing about my son, he was born in 1985.  But, no I mean an actual time capsule put in the ground 34 years ago. I first noticed it in 1996 when my office moved to Tackett’s Mill in Lake Ridge Virginia and I became involved in the Tackett’s Mill Foundation.

 

I recall being in a meeting where everyone around the table declared they didn’t expect to be around on May 29th, 2019. It seemed an impossibly distant date. All eyes that day had landed on me, the only one they expected would see it opened.  They were right.

It took the guys about five hours to remove the dirt and gravel covering it.

 

After the lid was popped off the capsule, we all crowded close to see the contents. Most obvious were large envelopes scattered on top of seemingly random items. The envelopes contained essays from contest winners represented by the county schools at that time. These kids were the only ones allowed to provide contents for the capsule. The items didn’t make a lot of sense until afterward when we matched them to the essays.

The Capsule unearthed beneath 3 feet of gravel and dirt

A deeper impression is not so much about what the kids wrote about and included but rather what they did not include. None of them wrote about social media, video games, or anything electronic. All the essays were hand-written. Their cursive penmanship was very neat and impressive.

Though it seems not much has changed in 34 years, the children’s essays point to a time of innocence and a connection to nature and a love for the trees, flowers, pure water, and birds found in abundance in Prince William County. More than one essay winner expressed concern for the county becoming too commercial because at the time many trees were being cleared for a large shopping center that would be the largest in the state of Virginia, which we now call Potomac Mills. The kids expressed a knowledge of their county government’s structure and the area’s history and the importance of good schools and academic proficiency.

What do you think our kids would write about today? What would they want to include in a new time capsule?

We’re thinking of burying another one~

The Honorable Kathleen Seefeldt and Dr. Jack Kooyoomjian have a first look.

The contents didn’t at first make sense until we matched them to the essays.

It was a once in a lifetime experience hosting this event.

Local athlete Benita Fitzgerald won the gold in the 1984 Olympics

I miss the rotary…

All the items will be on display at the Clearbrook Center of the Arts at 2230B Tackett’s Mill Drive in Lake Ridge VA on June 15th, 2019, from 1pm to 4pm.

The Lure of the Water; Praise for Sofia M. Starnes, Former Virginia Poet Laureate

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#poetlaureate, 10000 poems, Clearbrook Center of the Arts, Common Ground, Guy Lambert, Image Werks, Jazz, Lake Ridge, Poet Laureate, Prince William Arts Council, Tackett's Mill, The Clearbrook Foundation, Virginia, WPGC, Write by the Rails

Sofia M. Starnes introduced the selection panel to the press in May. “Poetry and Jazz”; was the July event to crown the Poet Laureate of Prince William County, VA, chosen by the panel.

Virginia’s Common Ground Jazz Band improvised to the poetry readings of Laureate nominees.

I promise this post is about water and poetry.  But, first a little background…  In the early stages of writing “Memory Lake,” I sought to define the lure of the water because Lake Michigan inserted itself into nearly every scene.  The water’s endless beauty was easy to describe and its symbolism easy to interject.  But the reason for its lure proved difficult.  My heart knew the reason, but I could not find the words except to call it “that large place where the Lord seems to dwell.”

Don’t give me the mic, Guy Lambert of WPGC, you’ll never get it back..

I decided, it was a poet’s job to analyze the lure of the water.  Since I am a novelist, I only needed to show my characters being drawn to the water.  I didn’t need to tell the reader why.  Still, I searched for a poem to satisfy my longing.  Mostly, I Googled it, and was always directed to ‘the lure of the water cooler’.

Then, I met Sofia M. Stearns, Virginia’s former Poet Laureate.  She kindly traveled to Northern Virginia in May to speak at an event I had arranged to launch our county’s search for a Poet Laureate.  Every word she uttered, even in casual conversation, was like poetry.  I purchased a copy of her Laureate project, “The Nearest Poem Anthology,” not expecting to find the answer I had been seeking because it is a collection of classic poems. Google is full of such poems, though not the partner essays Sofia collected to give the poems new meaning.  All of her reasoning is beautifully penned in her Introduction where I found, to my surprise, the answer I had been seeking!  I tell you, she nailed it. Take a deep breath and see if you don’t agree….

Lake Michigan; chilly but beautiful…

Two Poet Laureates of Prince William County! The selection panel chose Alexandra “Zan” Hailey and Dr. Robert Scott.

“Even those who fear the ocean are likely to stand on the beach and let the water tease their toes.  Or, Held further back through dread of the unknown, we will yet contemplate the inhale and exhale of the waves, the ineffable expression of their life, the horizon both permanent and altered by the making and unmaking of each day.  Holding on to our residue of awe, we return to the quiet shelter of our homes… Both proximity and smallness are now enhanced by the trace-reverence we’ve carried with us indoors, reverence for a source and a destiny that lie beyond us.”

Zan and Robert… my two new favorite poets! I can’t wait to see what they come up with for their projects. Their awards are sponsored by The Clearbrook Foundation.

Tackett’s Mill Lakeside, Lake Ridge, VA

I think this should be a poem, as should the rest of Sofia’s beautiful introduction. But, I am a novelist, not a poet, so what do I know? Sofia’s tenure as Virginia’s Poet Laureate ended June 26th.  Her project took two years to complete and I highly recommend it.  “The Nearest Poem Anthology” is for that quiet read before bed.  It inspires and enlightens, a few pages at a time.  It provides the words we crave through poetry to explain the lure of the moon, the lure of solitude, and family, of love, and of course, the lure of the water.

(The Prince William County Poet Laureate is an initiative of Write by the Rails and the Prince William Arts Council.  Virginia’s new Poet Laureate is Ron Smith.  Please explore the personalized links in this post.)

 

The honorary position of Poet Laureate of Virginia is hereby created. Beginning in 1998, the Governor may appoint a poet laureate from a list of nominees submitted by the Poetry Society of Virginia. Each poet laureate shall serve a term of two years with no restrictions on reappointment.

Saying “Yes” has consequences and endless possibilities… and the ‘Endless Possibilities Blog Tour’

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authors, Battle of Bull Run, Battle of Manassas, Blog Tour, Manassas, Prince William Arts Council, running, Virginia, Write by the Rails, writers groups

We’re off and running in 2014 and I’ve discovered I’m in the middle of at least six races at once.  Because I like to run, (saves time), I say ‘Yes’ quite often to a new race without yet knowing the route.  (If you want to jump to the finish line of this, go ahead to the last paragraph.*)

My writer’s group in Manassas, Virginia. In honor of the rails running through Manassas; sight of Civil War Battles of Bull Run, (the Union name) or Battles of Manassas, (the Confederate name).

There are two places in my life where I’m slow and cautious, and do not run.  The first is my writing.  I view it as a slow, solitary walk in the woods; full of reflection, backtracking, pauses to discover little treasures, and a keen, ever-mindful eye on the path.  The second is when I’m dealing with money, at home or at work.  I close out the world and only see numbers.  As for the rest, I follow my intuition and run where life takes me.  When I like a person, place or thing, I always say ‘Yes’ to him, her, or it.  (Being married to a ‘No’ person is very helpful!)

Write by the Rails Marketing Panel..

Prior to publishing a book, I was only running three races with family, friends, and work.  Once Memory Lake hit the marketplace, the other races began.  I stepped out from behind the computer to say ‘Yes’ to book signings, interviews, and speaking at book groups, clubs, and special events.  Along this race, I met other authors and joined “Write by the Rails“, (WbtR).  We are a writing group, kind of like AA for writers, where we support each other and find venues to help each other market our works.  Being in WbtR, led me to say ‘Yes’ to our President, who asked me to get involved in Prince William County’s Art Council.  I said ‘Yes’ to that President and became the Art Council’s Secretary-Treasurer.  I also said ‘Yes’ to my boss of 21 years, (a wonderful woman, whom I adore), when she asked me to find a way for her very quaint town center, Tackett’s Mill, to serve the community.  (She owns other properties, which I oversee as CFO, but Tackett’s is our favorite, and it’s where my office is located.)  Thank goodness, these three races will converge in 2014.  Tackett’s Mill will have a beautiful community center and one of its first events will be the announcement of a ‘Poet Laureate’, as organized by WbtR and sponsored by the Arts Council.

Fellow author’s book signing; Linda Johnston. (That’s me, in green, my favorite color.)

* It’s quite rewarding for me to see all that running around last year was not in circles.  It is following a route toward a finish line.  Good thing too, because I just said ‘Yes’ to a blog tour!  It is the “Endless Possibilities Blog Tour”, organized by WbtR members.  It means another race for me, and if you run it with me, you will meet other authors and may just find that next good book to read.

Here is the list, in no particular order, because it is a race, after all.

• Nick Kelly
• Tamela J. Ritter
• Katherine Gotthardt
• Dan Verner
• Cindy Brookshire
• Patricia Daly-Lipe
• Jan Rayl
• Kristie Feltenberger Gillespie
• Angela Bryce
• Shay Seaborne
• Mary Rosenthol
• Nancy S. Kyme
• Linda S. Johnston
• Stacia Kelly
  

  And here’s my grandbaby, “Lilly”, just because she’s so darn cute.

The Last Day of School, Opening Day of Camp, and Pawn Tickets. Huh?

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American Camp Association, Camps, Government, Labor Day, Midwest, Northern Michigan, Opening Day, Parenting Magazine, Pawn Stars, Recreation, Rules, Safety, Sheridan Mountain Campus, summer vacation, United States, Virginia

Summer vacation comes late to Virginia public schools.  Today is their last day; Tuesday, June 18th.  KT always missed these final days of school so I could get her to Northern Michigan for camp’s Opening Day, which occurred for Midwest camps over the weekend.  It was tough motivating her toward perfect attendance all year, knowing this conflict loomed. I always felt guilty about her missing school, although the only real lesson imparted these last few days is that government is inflexible.  Yes, I know we need rules.  They keep us safe, calm and civil.  But kids should have different rules shortly after Memorial Day.

Prince William County Virginia Crossing Guard. Thank-you Marietta!

When we moved here from Nebraska twenty years ago, I noticed an increased government presence.  The crossing guards impressed me most of all.  They are police department employees through the Crossing Guard Bureau.  They wear spiffy white caps, official badges, WHITE gloves, and they will not hesitate to put their lives in peril to stop traffic.  Some of the streets are quite busy.  All the commuters are angry and impatient.  Most notably, Virginia is HOT in June, especially when standing in the sun on asphalt. I assumed the guards vacationed over the summer until I chatted with Marietta yesterday.  She enters pawn tickets into the police department data base between assignments.  Hmmm… they never mention this on Pawn Stars.  Perhaps it would deter customers if they knew.  More government. More rules. More protection.  I forgot to ask Marietta if the gloves come off for this.

It’s not too late to rescue your kids from a summer of home rules, city dangers, and government protections.  You can still send them to camp, especially if you live in Virginia*.  Go to the American Camp Association website, search for the best fit, and have the fortitude to send them.  Pawn them away from your television and their game consoles.  Send them into nature.  They will be safe.  And, they will return to you much improved.

(You can read about camp, and journey there in your imagination by reading Memory Lake: The Forever Friendships of Summer.)

* Sheridan Mountain Campus’ summer registration is still open!

Stop and Hear the Cicadas. They are saying..,

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Cicada, Cicada brood 2013, cicadas, Prince William County, Turtle, Virginia, World Turtle Day

“Live for today.” Or, at least that’s what I imagined the cicadas said when they first emerged.  Their calls awakened a window to the past by transforming our woods to a tropical rainforest.  The male cicada‘s croaking vibrations whirled from the treetops in a deafening crescendo while the females snapped their legs in reply.

Cicada sounds from the treetops entrance a turtle in Virginia, June 2013.

I came upon a turtle so entranced by the primordial cacophony, he forgot to hide, even when I stood beside him.  He remained mid-stride, his neck stretched in awe toward the treetops.

When the male calls changed from a croaking roar to a steady buzz, I imagined they said, “I will survive.”  They had lived in darkness eating tree root sap for almost two decades.

Cicadas emerge after seventeen years by digging out from below…

With only two weeks left to live, they dug through rock-hard dirt into sunlight.  They shed their skins, unfurled their wings, and searched for a mate.  Their drive to procreate sent them into the trees.

I was the mother of grade school kids when they last appeared.  I didn’t stop to hear them.  Instead, I stopped our cocker spaniel from eating them.  I saw the kids off to school, drove to work, made dinner, and never gave them another thought.  Now I hear many messages in their calls.  Mostly, as they begin to die, I hear them ask, “Where will you be in seventeen years when we return?”

It’s a long way up…

Lust drives the cicadas into the trees to mate…

Prince William County Virginia cicada, May 2013

Searching for Treasure; Morels Amid the Squirrels

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Chicken Mushroom, copperhead, Eastern box turtle, Flora and Fauna, gensing, Global Positioning System, GPS, john cleese, morels, mushroom, mushroom hunting, snakes, Squirrels, Sulphur Shelf, treasure, tree bracket fungus, Virginia, Witches Butter

This could be “Tree Bracket Fungus” of the mushroom family, used in folklore for tea when ground to powder, though most are poisonous.

My sister, Susan, and her friend, Jo, showed me where I might find morels in the woods behind our home during their recent visit to Virginia.  “Check again after another week of higher than sixty degree days,” Jo advised when we failed to find any.  This week, as instructed, I set out to scavenge near fallen logs and hardwoods, poking gently at the layers of dead leaves with a sturdy stick.

I skirted the meandering creek in quiet solitude, thinking about our soon-to-be-born granddaughter, and how I might take this same walk with her someday.  I am convinced there is treasure in these woods.  I only need to see it the right way.

Almost stepped on this Eastern Box Turtle taking a nap…

After reading David Taylor’s intriguing book, Gensing, the Divine Root, a few years ago, I hunted unsuccessfully for months in search of green gold; the Root of Life.  Now, I’m after mushrooms.  I found plenty of fungi, but I wanted to find the wrinkly morels; the filet mignon of mushrooms, the epic epicurean delight Susan and Jo drool over just imagining it sautéed in butter.

This might be “Witches Butter” which is harmless, but I’m not sure, so I won’t try it…

Two young squirrels bounded ahead of me, turning often to glare suspiciously at me.  They also searched for treasure.  Near every tree Jo had identified, I found evidence of their digging.  Is it possible they ate morels?  One darted up a tree and chattered angrily at me. “I’m not after your buried nuts!” I insisted.  It darted around the trunk, out of sight.

I found a geocache; the hidden treasure of a game in which participants locate items by using a GPS…

A serpentine shape wiggled in the leaves between me and the tree.  A thin head poised to strike my bare leg if I advanced. There is very little copper in a copperhead.*  It does not shine like the bottom of my Revere Ware! I’d only seen pictures, so I imagined a real one would shimmer a little.  Au contraire, it blended perfectly into the leafy ground cover.  Taking a picture never occurred to me as I slowly stepped backward, like John Cleese in a reverse silly walk.

This might be “Sulphur Shelf” also called “Chicken Mushroom”, but it can be deadly on certain trees, so I’ll just take a picture…

What if more snakes squirmed below the bed of leaves? I arched around the snake, giving it a wide berth, then took off running.  I aimed for the two squirrels who bounded ahead.  They paused to gaze back at me and I read a different expression in their eyes.  They seemed to say, “Follow us, we’ll keep you safe.”  One of them had actually warned me to watch my step!  This idea satisfied me so much, I left the wilderness and aimed for the well-beaten path to continue my walk. “You can have the morels,” I said to the squirrels, really meaning it.  I’d found enough to treasure this day.

* I don’t mind the black ones, when they are underfoot!”  (Memory Lake, Chapter 23, “Going with the Flow.”)

Christmas: Creative Writing or a Clean House

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Christmas, cleaning, creative writing, Idaho, Pine, Sandpoint, Snow, tea, Virginia, writing

Sandpoint, Idaho, December 17th

Cleaning and writing are both attempts to place order in the midst of chaos.  Cleaning addresses my physical world, writing addresses my mind.  Both provide immediate satisfaction.  Plenty of disruptions abound when writing, as everyone easily finds me at my laptop.  No one bothers me while I roar about with the vacuum.  The problem is, cleaning does not last.  Meals pass and the kitchen floor is once again full of crumbs. Family members whirl about creating dust.  Hair and toothpaste splatter the bathroom. Clutter arrives with the daily mail and a new sort of mess arrives with the Christmas tree.  Pretty as it is, there are pine needles.  Because writing lasts, unless I forget to ‘back up’, which is my greatest fear instead of mildewed tile, I choose writing.  I still clean, however my emotional investment is far less.  Now as I breeze through the house with a dust rag, or the vacuum, my head is full of ideas and composition.  I don’t care when shoes reappear by door, coats return to the newel post, or crumbs return to the kitchen counter.  I have words to write and thoughts to think.  This year, I especially expect the two to peacefully coexist because I have skipped the Christmas tree, hopped a plane from Virginia with most of my family, and landed in north Idaho at my daughter’s house.  Overnight, more than a foot of snow has socked us in.  A fire is blazing in the stove, wood chips are everywhere, puddles by the door, and my laptop is on the coffee table.  After I hit ‘publish’, I will do a little sweeping, smile at my daughter as she makes tea, and think about that tricky scene in my novel and how to resolve the stilted dialogue.

This blog post was inspired by Emesereka.  Thank you! http://worldofinkandyarn.wordpress.com/2012/10/30/how-witches-were-born-happy-halloween/