The Walden Project

Walden at the Walkover 2011

2011-02-02T23:38:00.004-05:00

Come enjoy the Artwork, Poetry, Music, and Preferences of The Walden Project and Friends on Friday, February 10th at the Walkover Gallery in Bristol.

Fresh Snow - Sophie Daubner

2011-01-30T23:18:00.002-05:00

Alive - Max Kinlund

2011-01-23T15:19:00.002-05:00

Nothing will last forever.
Our world,
will dissolve in our minds.
And our perceptions,
will be dissolved by time.
And time,
Will solve itself.

I woke up today.In a haze,
Only to find you,
Awake in my thoughts.
I wanted to leave you
but my mind followed.

I put on different cloths today,
In a haze.
dressing in all I have,
black and grays.
I put on new cloths
but I never changed.

I talked to a friend today,
in a haze.
We talked like we’re strangers.
Asking about our day.
Well it’s good, we’re both doing great.
and that’s all we had to say.

I went to work today.In a haze.
Watched as the clock
counted eternity
On three hands.
I am learned to make due,
counting on my two.

I took a shower today,
in a haze.
Washed away,
The build up of time,
from my eyes.
But there’s always more to kill.

I went to sleep today,
in a haze,
Only to find you,
Awake in my thoughts.
Paying me in kindnesses,
while I cut the cost.

Nothing will last forever.
Our world,
will dissolve in our minds.
And our perceptions,
will be dissolved by time.
And time,
Will solve itself.

Watching the Days Burn Out - Bridgette Bubble

2011-01-11T21:07:00.000-05:00

My thoughts are only thoughts,

not very interesting to other people.

So many thoughts,

of mine.

So many people.

So many peoples thoughts.

Very few people listening, watching.

My eyes are watching everything they can,

but they can only see so much...

they only want to see so much,

So much to watch.

Too many people,

watching.

People watching,

they come in floods.

In fancy rain boots

carrying coffee cups.

Watching other people

waiting,

for their next cup of coffee.

Thinking,

wouldn't it be nice to be doing something.

Instead of watching

time go by,

as I forget thoughts

watching the days burn out.

Henry is Proud - Bridgette Bubble

2011-01-06T15:49:00.001-05:00

Untitled - Sophie Daubner

2011-01-04T20:11:00.000-05:00

Beats-Marcy Langlais

2011-01-02T16:19:00.000-05:00

Behind the closed door

I can feel sounds crashing into music

Vibrations sewn into my skin

Stitched to my hips

Hugging my heart

It fades in and out

Pulsing against the beat of my body

My feet are feathers swaying in the

Draft slipping through the seams in the door

The air is steaming sweetly

Dripping from my lips to my tingling fingertips

My brain and body are

Tangled between my tapping toes

I am dressed in dancing limbs and the

Unbreakable smile pressed against my chattering teeth

I am in sync with the grooves of my mind

This unshakable elation is

Sewn into the vibrations of my skin and

Radiating from my eyes

Untitled - Isabel Hamilton

2010-12-29T09:34:00.001-05:00

we stood looking for shooting stars
and i saw them and wished but you didn't have the patience and
black crows rolled off our tongues and flew to the moon
telling us of our prefect imperfections
and what lies to tell
when all we wanted was sex
but then it all changed and
i couldn't tolerate your balloon heart that floated over me
and laughed at my feet on the ground
so we made out mothers tell us the truth and they said happiness is fleeting
and we believed them with our whole hearts
so we ate the bullets for permanence
but then i threw mine back up because my stomach was weak
i was too weak to commit to anything
just yet
but my indecisiveness left us with nagging doubts that followed us like tails
and we were embarrassed so we pretended they weren't ours.

Local Foods Feast an VUHS

2010-12-14T16:28:00.000-05:00

Students enjoy fruits of their neighbors: VUHS hosts annual Local Foods Feast

VERGENNES—Students at the Vergennes Union Middle and High School enjoyed healthy and local fare for lunch last Friday thanks to a joint effort by the Walden Project, an alternative high school program with a focus on the environment, and Café Services, which runs the high school cafeteria.

Marcy Langlais, student co-organizer of the feast, said she hopes people will become more connected to what they eat by appreciating “the food in your own backyard as opposed to food from another country.”

“I wanted to work on this project because it raises awareness towards local foods,” Langlais added.

The fifth-annual Local Foods Feast featured products from ten Addison County farms, including the student-run Walden Community Garden. For the first time this year, the feast was a joint effort between the Walden Project and the cafeteria, meaning that anyone who bought hot lunch at the school on Friday was eating local.

Evan Myers, an eighth grader, said he liked the turkey vegetable soup, which featured local squash and Misty Knolls turkey. He buys lunch most days, he said, but if lunch featured more local ingredients, “I would be more eager to eat it.” Another group of middle school lunchers echoed his opinion: “For some reason local food tastes a lot better.”

Marcy Langlais and fellow Walden student Sophie Daubner headed up the feast as part of a larger Farm to School project. They recently attended the School Nutrition Association of Vermont Conference, where they were inspired by an “Art in the Cafeteria” workshop to create the large paintings of vegetables that covered the walls during the feast. They are charter student members of the new VUHS School Nutrition Committee, led by ANWSU Nutrition Liaison Lynne Rapoport.

Langlais, an 11^th-grader, has been working on sustainability issues for two years; her next project is to set up a composting exchange between the VUHS cafeteria and the Walden garden.

A new aspect of the Local Foods Feast this year was the performance of original music by students. Walden Project students played a short set that included a punk piece about eating local. At a celebration of local resources, “it’s important to include culture in the equation,” said Matt Schlein, Walden Project teacher and founder of the non-profit Willowell Foundation that supports it.

Schlein explained that the Local Foods Feast started as a partnership between the Walden Project and Mark Power’s Cooking with Science class. Past years’ menus have included similar seasonal items—including quiche, squash soup, and apple crisp—but the feast was held on a smaller scale outside the cafeteria as an alternate lunch. Schlein said he was “particularly excited to partner with the cafeteria and Café Services” this year and reach more people in the school.

As a joint effort of the cafeteria, the Walden Project, and the School Nutrition Committee, the Local Foods Feast represents the growing partnerships around Farm to School efforts at VUHS.

Magnified Clover - Bridgette Bubble

2010-11-29T22:01:00.000-05:00

Words - Marcy Langlais

2010-11-29T19:54:00.001-05:00

Words don't do what I wish they could
They never make sense or match up like they should
Words can't dance or sing
Or grow a Willow Tree and hang a rope swing
Words can't stand or walk
Or cover your bare foot when you need a sock
Words can't sink or swim
Or save you as you fall from a tree limb
Words can't laugh or play
Or ever say what you want them to say
Words don't do what I wish they could
They never make sense or match up like they should
They don't spill smoothy from my lips
I cannot create them on paper
With the pen resting beneath my fingertips

2010-11-16T21:01:00.005-05:00

Wilderness awareness games with John Hunt!

Photo by Bridgette Bubble

What are you waiting for? - Max Kinlund

2010-11-16T21:00:00.001-05:00

What are you waiting for?
‘Cause I’ve wasted away days with my virtues.
Trying to find the time,
To stop keeping my hands to myself.
But I have the tendency to keep my thoughts,
In my head.
Instead of exploding out,
I simmer down.
And talk to myself about how I feel now.
That sets up life to be a long ride,
‘Cause I’m racing thoughts on a one-track mind.
That leaves me blind
In the tunnel vision of my indecision of;
Do I really love you?
Do I hate me?
Do I really wanna live what life is gonna make me?
Well, I’m not so sure.
But it feels like it would be better without all these words.
Meddling with what I mean to say.
And this isn’t even what I’ve been meaning to say.
I’ve got so much,
so many things to tell you.
But I hold it back to,
Keep that social contract of,
Don’t hurt me, I won’t hurt you.
And we both can hold back our honest truths.
And lie about how we’re feeling,
‘Til we’re always feeling bad.
Well, maybe I’m projecting all that.
But I can’t help looking when you look so sad
And you’re spitting blood,
from always biting your tongue.
Well, open your mouth,
Don’t let your thoughts just dribble out.
Don’t let those punches stop at my face.
And I’ll never pull mine again,
So we can push our genius out,
When they try to box us in.
So what are you waiting for?
Don’t you wanna live?
Yeah, well I know living is hard.
But now’s the time to start,
Living to be happy,
So we can throw out all that,
Outdated tragedy.
And stop,
Making life into a common enemy.
Don’t destroy yourself,
If you think it’s all so unsatisfactory.
‘Cause there’s more to life than waiting.
But I have been waiting my whole life,
For you to stop waiting for me.
But love just seems,
like such a pointless thing to me.
How can you love someone,
When you hate yourself?
So I just stumble over words,
past the gates of hell.
‘Cause God helps,
Those who help themselves.
Well, I told ‘em,
Help me help you.
‘Cause I’m having a hard time,
braking even with the odd truth,
when you say,
“Patience is a virtue”

Walden 10th Anniversary Birthday Bash!

2010-07-13T17:57:00.002-04:00

Wednesday August 11th:

12 PM @ The Willowell Land- Capture the Flag Tournament
4 PM @ The Willowell Land - Potluck dinner & stories around the fire.
9PM @ 51 Main in Middlebury - Drinks, Music, Poetry and general merriment.

Musicians interested in performing contact Matt Schlein(willowellfoundation@earthlink.net).

Complimentary garlic, kale, bread oven & fire.

P.S. Walden friends and family welcome as is Mt. Abe Tracking Club.

Garden Days!

2010-06-13T17:09:00.002-04:00

Anyone is welcome to help out in the Walden garden over the summer.
Wednesday's will be general garden work days and Friday's will be Herb Garden days if you are interested in learning more about herbs and what they can be used for.

Walden Diploma

2010-06-03T08:19:00.005-04:00

Graduation

2010-06-03T08:16:00.003-04:00

The end of the year is upon us and the seniors are getting ready to graduate. Walden graduation will be happening at 6PM on Thursday June 3 on the Willowell/Walden land in Monkton, VT. Join us for a potluck beforehand. This event is rain or shine.

Congratulations seniors!

Art Under the Stars(CANCELED)

2010-04-28T20:27:00.006-04:00

Walden's annual Art Under the Stars event will be happening on Wednesday May 19th from 7-9PM! Explore the Walden land as it is transformed into an outdoor art gallery. Nature art and beyond. Enjoy a dessert buffet and when the sun goes down enjoy poetry and music around a glowing fire.
-The poetry reading and performance piece of the night is open to ANYONE, original content is great or bring in a piece by your favorite author to read. Musical entertainment is also very welcome.
The Walden/Willowell Land is located off Bristol rd. on Stoney Meadow Lane.
Hope to see you there!

Magicians Without Borders

2010-04-22T21:05:00.002-04:00

This past Wednesday Tom Verner who started Magicians Without Borders came to Walden. Tom spoke about how Magicians Without Borders came to be, where it has gone, and of course performed a few of his magnificent magic tricks. Magicians Without Borders travels to refugee camps in places such as Uganda, El Salvador, and Ethiopia. They also perform for orphanages and hospitals. Tom spoke enthusiastically about all of his trips and performances. He was eager to share his experiences and ended with a flourish of rainbow tissue paper trailing from his mouth.

Dysfunction - Marcy Langlais

2010-04-19T21:12:00.002-04:00

Lightning hits her eyes as she sits unmoved
Still out of groove
Dysfunction
Spilling from her lips
Words and lies and burned out butterflies
In her eyes - dysfunction
The time rings in her ears, a reoccurring rhyme
A rhyme of a time when she could love
When she spoke sweetly when things were gentle
Dysfunction
A rhyme of a time when things ran smoothly
When thoughts made sense
Dysfunction
A rhyme of a time long ago
Demons of the past haunting her with hallowed eyes
Cruel voices stay in the air
Dysfunction
Bringing up bad choices again
She cannot erase where shes been
Dysfunction bound in her soul
Never love never smooth never sweet never gentle
Never whole
Dysfunction

Hungry Eyes - Bridgette Bubble

2010-04-19T21:09:00.001-04:00

Hungry eyes
Ready to please
Take me away
Simply at ease
Wild at heart
I feel their stare
Though I cannot see them
I know they are there

Karma - Ryan Delisle

2010-04-19T21:07:00.002-04:00

You see a poor old woman sitting on the sidewalk.
Try not to listen but you hear her talk.
She asks politely to spare some change.
You have enough money and you say no, feel ashamed.
Keep walking down the street and you think some more.
Would she give you money if you were the poor?
Drive out of town the next day and crash into a ditch.
Just because karma is a ruthless bitch.

Untitled - Jonathan Davis

2010-04-19T21:02:00.002-04:00

If I ever own a cafe I will place
one chair at each table.
When I have coffee, I want to drink alone.

Sitting with an empty chair across from me drives me insane.
It's breathing into the face of a world, a society, a foolish
expectation
that screams...

Screw you for not playing with people every moment of the day.
For not surrounding yourself with chatter.
For not commercializing every second of your life.
For not drinking your coffee in a crowd.

Being lonely no longer means that you want company.
It means not having someone else on your back
for any period longer than it takes you to shower.

It has become an introvert's nightmare,
an ocean of little orange fish all following each other.
That is why in my cafe the chairs are placed one to each table.

Walden in the Big Apple

2010-03-25T11:54:00.010-04:00

At 7:30AM on March 22 Walden took two vans into New York City. Upon arriving and parking the vans around 2PM we walked to the Gershwin Hotel where we spent our nights and also conveniently located next to the Museum of Sex. We spent the afternoon walking through a drizzle around the Village and later sat down for a dinner of Indian cuisine. On the walk back to our hotel it poured rain. Rain coats and umbrella's made no difference, everyone was soaked.
By 10AM on Tuesday everyone was either at the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the Natural History Museum. Three hours later we were on the subway headed for Little Russia in Brooklyn and Brighton Beach/Coney Island. Even though nothing was open on the boardwalk we walked out to the pier and looked back at Coney Island before it gets turned into condos. Later that evening we ventured into China Town via subway to find ourselves some dinner and delicious ice cream.
Wednesday was a bit windy but there was blue sky and the sun was shining. By 8:45AM we already walking our way to The High-Line. The High-Line is a raised park built on old train tracks used to bring dangerous trains off the streets. On our way to The High-Line we happened to pass by The Big Booty Bread Co. This prompted a few of us to stop on the street and play big booty in front of the bakery. By 5PM we were arriving back in Vergennes, VT. A successful Walden adventure to NYC!

Graveyard for Trees - Fiona Spencer

2010-03-19T16:28:00.001-04:00

Ode to cold union of bark and scratch mark
To tangles of my hair to anxious branches
I’ve been here before, this graveyard of trees
I know you’re used for swing sets, for labyrinths for fauns and sometimes daggers
This risk is one I’m willing to take for I know the passage is dangerous
But if I pass and land somewhere among the shells of beechnuts
I will have found the much anticipated cocoon of my infancy
Like the daughter of the moon finding the last portal back to her underground home
I will leave traces of my time on earth, for those who know where to find them

Poetry - Madeline Delaney

2010-02-08T18:41:00.001-05:00

This poem is not poetry

It cannot express everything that I feel

But it tries,

It tries to understand.

This poem is not classy

And you,

You will not be impressed

Because they are too young

And I,

I am too old to be excused.

This poem is honest

But it is far from the truth

And even I don’t know what that is,

The truth,

That is the truth.

This poem is not poetry

It is just an imitation

And though these words resemble rhythm

They cannot sing in tune

But this poem loves the sound of its lyrics

And the way they don’t always rhyme.

This poem is not poetry,

You are mimicry to me,

And I am not the person anyone thinks I am.

This poem is not an apology

But I hope you’ll forgive me

It’s not a regret

And I would never change its meaning.

This poem is not poetry,

It’s just a poem,

And you are just my muse,

But I will always love you more than this poem

This poem,

This poem is not poetry

This poem should not be about you

But it is.

This poem is not poetry

But I am.

Recent Visits

2010-02-04T20:05:00.002-05:00

On Tuesday February 2, Walden visited Good New Garage in Burlington. We were showed the garage where they work on cars and were highly encouraged to do lots of volunteer work. We also got a quick tour of Bike Recycle Vermont, located right below GNG.

On Wednesday we had a great visitor Chris Kiely. Chris does work in oriental medicine and also teaches Tai Ji classes. Chris and Matt did a short Tai Ji demonstration although we were told that we couldn't experience it fully because most of what happens goes on inside not out.

Webs - Paulita Fysh

2010-01-19T16:12:00.002-05:00

Thorn covered vines

across the floor they creep,

bonfire like crackling.

Blooming black roses

born brittle and

dead.

Webs on my face

hold open my

eyes.

The shadows release her,

forcing me to watch.

Twining up her legs

and around her body,

vines reach up through her hair,

she's by the door one minute,

standing over me the next.

My temperature drops.

Still, her voice,

I hear in my head.

Sound I can't make,

spider webs all over

me.

Your own

fear of death draws you in.

On my face spiders crawl,

to her arms they leap

across, together they knit

us,

by flying back and forth.

The sound of her

voice,

sends a chill up my spine.

While the webs

lock us into place,

staring at one at each other.

As the moon slithers

across the sky,

and all the stars fall asleep.

As her voice fades

I wake to find,

it all a dream.

The only

image greeting my

waking mind,

is a collage with your picture,

imbedded in it forever.

It's the first thing I look at

when I wake,

and the last before I sleep.

The webs

come back to my mind,

linking us together

across time,

across dreams,

and through the thorn,

covered,

vines.

Answers - Ryan Delisle

2010-01-19T16:06:00.002-05:00

What happened to the day when tomorrow never came?

What happened to the player who missed out on the game?

What happened to his children?

What happened to his wife?

What happened to his body?

What happened with that knife?

What happened to his home?

What happened to his job?

What happened to the world

Where he sat on top?

Thanks!

2010-01-18T16:20:00.003-05:00

Thank you to everyone who came out to the Walkover Gallery on Friday night!

It was a lot of fun and for anyone who missed it you can still check out the art work at the Walkover Gallery in Bristol. It will be up through February.

Untitled - Ivy Sienkiewycz

2010-01-05T21:00:00.002-05:00

I shy away from a bursting bubble of cold air

and clutch my coffee closer,

searching for the familiar feeling that crawls down my spine,

leaving me for sleep.

But all I can feel now is

the wailing trumpet of blues

hugging me tight as if to

keep me from running out the door into

the cloudy sky and

the dim lighting that weighs on my shoulders

as if to tell me,

“slow down,

life won’t run away from you,

only you can run away from life.”

Walden at the Walkover!

2010-01-04T17:13:00.003-05:00

The students of Walden will be presenting their art work, musical talents, poetry, and cooking skills (free food!) on Friday, January 15th at the Walkover Gallery on Main st. in Bristol from 6 - 8:30pm.

Facebook Event

I Don't Remember - Jake Thompson

2009-12-07T22:18:00.000-05:00

I don’t remember
Severity, a cold December
Cold-spell, bombshell
Living a month of my life in a cold bitter hell
Thoughts are trickling through my mind
And I find in a six foot hole
Bodies are stacked a mile high
Now I can’t defy the reasons why
So many innocent people died
And why’d we steal innocence?
To cover up the evidence
F-bombs turned to A’s
My mind vague and grey
As my conscious slips through one ear and out the other
Now I remember what happened that December
Mushroom clouds
Screaming
Looking up and down
A whole city drowned by atomic destruction
Two whole cities deconstructed
Miles around deleted
Populations depleted
Now
Babies with mutations
Health complications
Quarantine
Can’t be seen
Some have no idea what this means
Now I remember,
It wasn’t December

Paper Shadows - Madeline Delaney

2009-11-23T19:50:00.001-05:00

Warped reflections
of eyelashes,
of pupils,
and time calloused hearts
Stick to the bent heads of nails,
Catching the sugar in sap
Sweetness frozen to concave tin
While honey reads life as a bible
Pollen ink on petal parchment
Written by the worker bees
Returning from the hive of God
Where the drones die free of their sins
And the failing queen follows the current to salvation.

So now, in this theatre of war,
The Armageddon of souls,
I pray to paper shadows
And watch through the lens of inhibited vanity
As the sunlight taxes the touch of gold
Casting candied reflections
of eyelashes,
of pupils,
and time calloused hearts

Oil - Max Kinlund

2009-11-18T18:43:00.002-05:00

If a painting is worth a thousand words,

Then I give a thousand apologies to all the poems I have spurned.

And I give a thousand thanks to all the inks of this earth.

I have squandered all the paintings of my mind,

Replaced by curly Q's and dotted I's,

But since the imagination is desperate to die,

It has puked up it's innards across these lines.

And despite my perfect eyes, I can not see.

Despite the perfect lines, I can not read.

I try and try. These symbols, what do they mean?

Even as I write them, I try and listen in;

To this beating in my chest,

To this hammer made of tin;

Screaming through my fingers,

Pounding out my soul,

Onto tree bark,

Onto paper,

Where it all just turns to mold.

Writing "why?" in my tears,

Scratching "Anger" in my blood.

I paint a thousand pictures a day,

Drawn out in ash and mud.

But the pounding never stops,

The ink just comes in floods,

And I'm left with an empty pen,

Writing ethereal words to be blown away by the wind.

Stolen by the zephyr of my empty canvas,

A single word picture of the things I miss.

You Can't Take It With You

2009-11-17T21:41:00.002-05:00

Today Walden enjoyed the UVM department of theater's production of, You Can't Take It With You at The Kennedy Center. The play was written in 1936 by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. It ran 838 performances on Broadway and was given the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. You Can't Take It With You is based around a crazy but lovable family who believes that you shouldn't do anything unless it makes you happy.

2009-11-15T16:56:00.002-05:00

The boys dress up for a Tuesday in the city.

North - Ivy Sienkiewycz

2009-11-02T20:22:00.003-05:00

Through this lens I see the world in color.

His bold eyes stare back through to me.

"You don't belong this far north," his lips move.

Click.

"I don't belong this far north."

Color captured in black & white

warm brown eyes turn a cold shade of grey.

Click.

His red wool coat pasted in front of

orange, yellow, red, brown, foliage.

All translated in one two hundredth of a second

from life to grey scale.

Confirming that,

"I don't belong this far north.

Dirty with Heroin - Jake Thompson

2009-11-02T20:17:00.002-05:00

A harp in his hand
Is he in a band?
As I stare at the curls on his chin
We wait for him to begin
Is he gay is he straight?
He listens to us debate
As we wait for him to begin
He sits in a refined position
But I still need to make a decision
Why is he so happy?
The glee on his face
Could enlighten the whole human race

Finally he began to pick
And something in my mind clicked
He loves to play
This explains it all
The smile on his face
And why he was happy
So he begins to play
His music filled with passion, beauty, and bliss
But I couldn’t dismiss the fact
He was happy
He finishes

The next day
The man we debated whether he was gay
Was found on the street
He had met his defeat
For his blood was as mud
Dirty with heroine
For drugs was his demon
And he wasn’t a heathen
He was far from it

As I reach my conclusion
It was no illusion
The music in my head
Was certainly not dead
But it full of passion, beauty, and bliss
Until he left our world
Due to heroins deadly kiss.

My emotions rendered
My soul i surrender
"Despite all my rage
I am still just a rat in a cage"

But its time to turn the page
As I listen to the band
I wish to hold anothers hand
But to dance will not change the fact
I'm still a rat in a cage

To go big or go home
On this im not alone
To give this dog a bone
Or to fake it
I am alone and will not make it

To give the dog the bone
To go big or go home

Little New York Bastard

2009-11-02T20:04:00.004-05:00

Walden was very excited to have Dylan Raskin, the author of "Little New York Bastard," visit us in Monkton as he does very few public readings. Dylan gave us the chance to ask questions about his book, writing, the publishing world, and life in general. Dylan was excited to answer our questions, entertain us with stories, and help us consume our specialty, krispy kale.

5th Grade class visits Walden!

2009-10-05T19:56:00.004-04:00

On October 2, Alison Dibica's 5th grade class from the Addison Elementary School spent the day at the Willowell Land with Walden students. The class got a tour of the garden and split up into four groups. Each group had a Walden student as a leader. The groups spent time at four different stations: tracking, shelter building, nature art, and fire making/story telling. The stations were run by Walden students. Everyone stopped for lunch in between stations and ate a great stew made out of veggies fresh from the garden. The Willowell Land is now scattered with shelters, bridges, and plenty of fairy houses. We hope the 5th grade students learned something from their experience at Walden and went away eager to share their knowledge with others.

910 Billion and Counting - Jake Thompson

2009-09-27T15:51:00.000-04:00

910 billion and counting.
Machine guns mounting
Bullets screech and tear
Leaving bones of the wounded bare
As a ruthless zealot speeds down the street
Hundreds of innocent civilians meet they’re defeat
And who cares, we care
We care to stop the ruthless zealot running down the street
And to prevent civilians from meeting their defeat
To stop leaving bones of the wounded bare
To stop the bullets that screech and tear

Just for this one day, to some the idea seems queer
But for the violence just for one day, to just disappear

For violence is a disease
That doesn’t go with ease
For we need to act as one
For the damage to be undone

Hi, Baby. - Ivy Sienkiewycz

2009-09-27T15:44:00.003-04:00

Hi, Baby.

This is just to tell you that I am stronger than the coffee in front of me.

I am stronger than dark roast

and you

you are sweet as dripping honey comb.

I can see the dark golden substance swimming in your eyes

and even when they close

a few stray drops manage to escape

sticking to cheeks

eyelashes

lips.

This is just to tell you that I am stronger than my reflection.

I am stronger than this glass mirror

and you

you are sweet as a kiss on the cheek.

I can see myself in your eyes

and even when they close

I can still feel my presence on your face

lingering on cheeks

eyelashes

lips.

Baby.

This is just to tell you

that you

you make me stronger.

Canoe Trip at Stillwater Reservoir

2009-09-26T10:24:00.007-04:00

On Tuesday morning(9/22) Walden students set off on a three hour bus ride to Stillwater Reservoir in the Adirondacks. A little rain didn't set us back as we loaded up the ten canoes that we had rented. The group was split up into two smaller groups. Group one set off first en route to the other end of the reservoir, while group two only went half as far. Unfortunately from this point on I can only report on group one as I was not a part of groups two's adventures.

Day 1: We were supposed to camp at site #26 but instead we found a large beach close by which we claimed as our camp spot. After setting up tents and tarps, wood was collected for a fire and dinner was started. Dinner was a delicious mix of mac & cheese with hot dogs. As it grew darker we pimped the fire and told scary stories.

Day 2: The night before we figured out that we had the other groups hot dogs and they had our bread. So early in the morning Matt and Ephraim set out on a recon mission to trade hot dogs for bread. After we set out for a leisurely paddle up to where the reservoir turns into a river. On our way back the winds picked up and made it difficult for us to return. When we finally made it back we saw the other group coming up the reservoir. They stopped to talk to us which was not a smart choice on their part for soon after it began to down pour. As we huddled in our tents and kept fairly dry, group two was forced to paddle to their next camping spot in the heavy rain. Instead of breaking camp and finding a new spot to camp we decided to stay another night in the same place. The rain came and went all night. We happily ate pesto pasta for dinner and after sweated it all out in the sauna that we built.

Day 3: On the only sunny day we got an early start, packed up all of our gear and paddled into Big Burnt Lake and ate what ever snack and lunch food were left in the coolers. We then took a walk up to Salmon Lake. We arrived at our final campsite quite late and prepared to eat burritos for dinner when we realized that we didn't have any tortillas. Instead we had to mix up what ever was left in the coolers in a pot and call it good. Because everyone's tents were wet and sandy, everyone slept under the stars which were actually out. There were even a few shooting stars.

Day 4: We woke up to more clouds and dew covering our sleeping bags. It was 7 AM and everyone was packing up and eating their one entitled pop tart. By 7:30 we were on our way back to the bus. There was a slight drizzle but we had the wind to our backs and made it in good time. Free hot chocolate and coffee when we arrived. Everyone made it back in good condition and were happy to be on their way home.

Kate Greenstreet

2009-09-20T20:41:00.003-04:00

On September 15 Kate Greenstreet, a published poet from New Jersey, stopped by the Willowell land in Monkton, VT to share her poetry and talk with the Walden students. She read poems from her chapbook, Learning the Language, and her new book, The Last 4 Things.

Welcome to the Walden blog!

2009-09-19T11:44:00.001-04:00

Woohoo! Finally a place for everyone to be updated and informed of the happenings at Walden!

The temperature has begun to drop and the leaves are changing colors. Recently Walden students have begun to haul firewood, prepare the shelter for cold winter days, and prep garden beds for lots of garlic to come.

On Tuesday the 22 we will leave for our four day canoe trip at Still Water Reservoir(http://www.stillwaterreservoir.com/). Look for pictures when we return!