Spring Runoff

This is a crazy time of year for teachers. Here's the way I think of it: the same channel and canyon walls conduct the flow of the days and their requirements. But gradually, the water is rising. You can no longer see the view ahead, only the torrent around you, and all of that water must get through to the same place.

I entered two pieces in another art show today. It is called The Green Show- leaving the artist to decide if that refers to color, currency or politics. We will see if my pieces are selected this time. I have high hopes for one of them.

Andy got his orange belt today and was awarded several top places. He is most proud of first place in sparring, as he was paired with only partners a belt above him, and outfought them all. I am so happy for him.

We have scheduled a tae-kwan-do party for Rose's birthday, and purchased Avatar: The Last Airbender party supplies. I hope several of her classmates will be able to come. We ended up inviting them all; she just can't be trusted to deliver invitations with any discretion, and we really don't have a good idea of which friends would be most likely to accept. Rose is more of a pet or a mascot- she doesn't have any true peer friendships. It may be time to start her in her own series of martial arts classes.

The book club met- I came very close to bowing out this time, as Peter was out of town and I had to find a babysitter for Rose. Oh, and because the book just would NOT come, although I requested it from the library with plenty of time. Finally, last week, I broke down and bought it- Jane Eyre. I really didn't want to own it.

Jane Eyre and I have a big history- remember how I'm always yapping about spring fever? Well, at least 14 years ago, I got addicted to a movie version of it- Timothy Dalton plays Mr. Rochester- and that was my first confirmation that I have a little problem with fantasizing during spring. Anyway, I rewound and rewound that movie. It is the most romantic thing EVER, because it's all about RESTRAINT. And longing.

ANYWAY... the book, friends, is really long. And Victorian. And gothic. And prosy. I hadn't read it before, just watched the movie over and over. I thought I would be put out by wading through all of the exposition.

Turns out, no. The same scenes brought me to breathless heartache. Or, as Charlotte Bronte describes it SO VIVIDLY, "pure gold, with a steely point of agony." I didn't get it all read in time, but I did get to the book club, and have since finished it. It deserves its place among the classics, and reading about the Bronte sisters and the context of the times enriches the reading, as well as softens some of the heavy-handed piety.

It's a 5. It deserves it. There are certainly parts that I skimmed through, but it's a masterpiece.

So, here I am with THE VIDEO. Rewinding it and rewinding it. It's been made into a movie at least 5 times, but it's hard for me to imagine anyone else BEING Mr. Rochester. The copy I got from the library is 3 video cassettes in a battered case. It had to be retrieved from the basement for me.

So I have ordered myself a newly remastered DVD. I'll watch it every spring. Along with Enchanted April.