Meanwhile, the fourth annual Lantern Walk was Thursday night at Crestwood. While the lantern walk is a relatively new tradition at our school, it feels familiar to many families. As events go, this one is simple. Families show up at 6:30 with (or without) a mug for cider and with (or without) a lantern or flashlight. We gather in the gym, and students up through 3rd grade who have made lanterns in art class find theirs on the table. Then everyone goes outside (well after sunset) and walks through the woods, gathering on the field below to sing songs and share the story of St. Martin, a Roman soldier who, as legend tells it, once cut his cloak in half to save a homeless man from freezing to death on the side of the road.
Despite the nutty week and day off of school on Friday, plenty of families showed up Thursday night, lanterns in hand. Sadly, the blurry picture below is the best one I have to share:
I am planting seeds of love in my heart.
I am planting seeds of love in my heart.
And as they grow I take them everywhere I go.
I am planting seeds of love in my heart.
And as they grow (and as they grow)
They overflow (they overflow)
From every part (from every part)
Of my heart (of my heart)
Heart to heart (heart to heart)
Friend to friend (friend to friend)
Sing it out again!
I am planting seeds of love in my heart.
I am planting seeds of love in my heart.
And as they grow I take them everywhere I go.
I am planting seeds of love in my heart.
The story of St. Martin is about generosity, compassion and humility. At Crestwood, we know that when kids are learning outdoors, they benefit in a myriad of ways. Not only are they experiencing hands-on the science of how plants, animals and insects live and interact in our natural world, but they also learn the generosity of sharing our garden and woods with the community, the compassion of working with others to care for those spaces, and the humility of finding out that projects don't always go as planned.