Odes to Nature

My "Teaching Science" class spent some time yesterday at the Discovery Center in Murfreesboro. A former Coca-Cola bottling plant, the facility is now a hands-on children's museum and environmental education center with a wetlands area, boardwalk, spring, and wildlife rehab services to boot.

My class spent four hours with an environmental educator and came away with great materials and ideas for our future classrooms. A little snail, a mass of spring blossoms, a new awareness about fresh water, and a disgruntled-looking owl struck my fancy.

A tiny l'il snail so odd,
Who ne'er would like it on sod,
Was happy until 
I, in good will, 
scooped up said small gastropod.


fresh breeze wafting by
what is that? it smells so sweet!
there -- honeysuckle!


a column of water
tall, blue, plentiful
a world of water
three-quarters water, one-quarter land
lots of water
plenty
plenty for all
but

mostly salt.
A shorter column of water, 
less, blue, shorter:
fresh.
but
polluted
can't be accessed
how much is left for all
all the people
all the animals
all everything

a column of water
tall, blue, plentiful
a world of water
reduced to 
one drop.


This is Otis. He had a stroke and can't fly. But he's getting better.