Last Saturday the 90th Saturday Reunion began in the majestic and hallowed halls of Riverside Church with Andrew Solomon. He made us laugh, cry, and most of all, he made us think.
One of my favorite quotes that he repeated was, “When I was little, my mother used to say, ‘The love you have for your children is like no other feeling in the world. And until you have children, you don’t know what it’s like.'”
In our school buildings we may well be surrogate parents, aunts/uncles, or grandparents for many of our children. That love for the students sustains us, day after day, and especially in times of trouble. That love is patient, kind and enduring.
And yet the love for our children, and of course our grandchildren, is like no other feeling in the world. That’s so true. The love, the worry. the fun, the joy, the sadness . . . all blur together over time as our children age!
A second big idea from Andrew Solomon’s keynote was about the difference between love and acceptance. He said, ” We need to change society. Most people love their children, but acceptance is a process that takes time. Even if a child does not have extraordinary talent, deficits in acceptance are NOT a sign of no love. Instead, it’s the difference between acceptance levels: social, family and self.
Do we need more love in the world?
Do we need more acceptance of others / self in the world?
Here is Andrew Solomon’s book!
Process / Goals
To complete my reflections/thoughts and stories from last Saturday’s 90th Saturday Reunion! What a range from Andrew Solomon’s love and acceptance to Tara’s perfect hashtag #DoTheWork with Cornelius and Kate. The whole writing process and technology with Cornelius, and then the books with Lucy, Shana, Norah, Molly and Heather. And our return to Riverside Church for Lucy’s magnificent call to action. Learning for my teaching soul at #TCRWP’s Saturday Reunion with great conversations all day long!
This post – focus on two big ideas from Andrew Solomon’s opening! Write, tag, revise, link, grab pictures, and publish!
Which session/post was your favorite from #TCRWP and why?
Opening Keynote: This post
Session 1: Cornelius Minor 0 – Reading
Session 2: Kate Roberts – Reading
Session 3: Cornelius Minor – Writing
Session 4: Lucy and the Classroom Library Project – Reading
Thank you, Anna, Betsy, Beth, Dana, Deb, Kathleen, Stacey, and Tara. Check out the writers, readers and teachers here. It’s the March Slice of Life Challenge; posts are DAILY!
Resource - Full 
Your post made me think. It also makes me want to learn more.
Thank you! If you want to learn more about Andrew Solomon – check out his Ted Talk! It is excellent!
Since I wasn’t there, I love hearing all the stories (and learning) from last Saturday at TC. Thanks for sharing. I’ll definitely check out Andrew Solomon’s book and Ted talk.
I have enjoyed your posts this week, Fran. Even though I was not there I have learned so much from your reflections. Thank you for sharing.
I have heard Solomon’s TED talk and his many NPR interviews, Fran – I guess it’s time to read his book, too. A wise writer, for sure.
[…] a veritable buffet of choices that was incredibly difficult. (You can read about those sessions here, here, here, here and here.) The #TWT Blog Series could be read in order or as I had time to […]