Poetry, Peer editing and Protocol

Class met at our old stomping ground today; Murkland Hall. Lara started us off with a wonderful workshop on poetry that was invigorating for some, calming for others. After we had explored some poetic structures and hints, as well as listened to Lara read several poems with an emphasis in "memorable places," class disbanded for some private poetry-writing time.

Once we reconvened, several brave and talented classmates, (and equally-talented instructor, Eleanor), shared their poems with the class. Appreciating the creativity around us and sharing warm thoughts on what our peers had written was a great way to start the day. Of personal mention to Group Scat Track Fever is Matt's cheeky and clever poem which he was inspired to write after reading an exerpt from David Carroll's "The Year of the Turtle." He and Lizzy had previously expressed their mutual "passionate disgust for his molestation of large turtles," as Carroll had described an afternoon he spent physically man-handling huge turtles in order to get a closer look at them. Matt has so graciously allowed us to share his awesome work with the world:

"Let Me Sun Myself"
by Matthew Moore

I read "The Year of the Turtle"
And thought it was fertile
with love and respect
for the pond.
but then as I read,
I became full of dread.
Carroll's harassment of turtles
was really quite hurtful.
He loved them so much,
Now they're dead.


Matt's poem was a great source of comic relief during the workshop, and definitely struck a chord with many of us as to the similar feelings we had after reading Carroll's work. Thank you for letting us post it here, Matt!

After poetry we moved right on to the "peer editing" portion of the day. Each of us, having brought in an updated copy of the personal pedagogies we'd writen, was paired with a classmate with whom the instructors saw both an educational similarity and thought-provoking difference. We spent the next two hours adding comments to our peers' papers, while enjoying lunch by ourselves or in small groups. Before the entire class met up at our usual computer lab, the pairs joined up again to discuss in-depth whatetver praise, suggestions and/or constructive critisism they had to offer one another.

It was right around lunch time, when we were each head-long into our roles as editors, when a conspicuous alarm canvassed the entire UNH campus. "A voice from God," (as Matt likes to call it), began announcing that there was a "Severe weather warning! Seek shelter immediately!" It was really a mega loudspeaker calling out to us over the terrential downpours. It rained at least a few inches in a matter of hours. As the class had a schedule to keep to, which required most of us to travel outdoors despite the terrible weather, we EE'ers left the intoxicating aroma of thoroughly damp student resonating through Morrill Hall.

We Track Scatters used our final 3 hours of class to make great headway on the project binder we will hand in at the time of presentation. On Monday we will return one last time to the Warren Farm for a final walk amongst our beloved transects, that we may gather the final prints, soot trap data, and hopefully some pictures of wildlife captured over the weekend. We are very grateful to Mr. Warren for all his hospitality and good nature in letting us explore his property. It has been a terrific experience. Certainly on Monday we hope to have the chance to tell him how much it has meant. Hopefully, too, we will come back with the final bits of good news as to mammal signs.