Summer Village University

June 27th:
We brought  Concord's “Village University” to the graduation of 702 of Concord’s middle school students. What to say to an auditorium full of such a brimming “crew”, complete with parents and teachers, on the edge of their seats, looking forward to springing into summer vacation? The principal introduced the gift we had for the students, the engaging book: “Concord: A Veritable Treasure Hunt", myself, and 3 colleagues: “We have something very . . . . . (I glanced into the eye of a student in the front row), very . . . . . (along the side), very . . . . . (on the stage behind me), very . . . . . (and further up the auditorium) very . . . . . (all were silent) special to share with you." 
I held up the little blue book with the picture of Thoreau’s “Invisible Mountain” and site of the first clue, barely visible on the cover. "For, as my colleagues on the hunt who have come from afar (Eugene, Oregon, Sierra Leon, Ghana Africa), will share with you, Concord is a special place for many people the world over, with remarkable treasures to discover.”Carolina spoke with a brimming heart of her own of her love for her “sister”, Louisa May and Louisa’s sisters three. Solomon’s message was brief and to the point. A young refugee from Sierra Leon, whose schooling barely extended beyond the 8th grade, “Concord has given me hope; the beginning of a new life.”  Stephen, whose roots were torn from his native land, spoke of how: "People came together in Concord to stand up together for what they believed in.” He and Solomon were members of the Center for American Studies' first "Dream Team”, introduced at the “Village University Celebration.”
As we departed, Mary, the school nurse, who had earlier received a copy of the Treasure Hunt, thanked us, noting that the Treasure Hunt was a sonnet of love.

^ From Sympathy & Antipathy to Empathy: Re-Envisioning Gender Roles. Karin’s message was simple and to the point: only when men and women are able to lift themselves above the pendulum swings of sympathies and antipathies, to behold the true self of the other, do couples have a veritable foundation upon which to build. Problems-challenges-opportunities.
^ Pete Seeger Songfest & Voices of the Heartland. We weren’t 8 notes into “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” before Pete’s harmonies united us, one and all. The looks that passed from gaze to gaze between those singing went beyond words.
Further glimpses at:  < concordium.us >