Playing tourist in Mobile

Mid-June, 2012. School had only been out for a couple of days in Oregon, and we packed our bags and headed to Mobile. Mama and Daddy weren't able to make it to Portland for Graduation, so we decided to bring the graduate - and the rest of the family - to them. We took a red-eye, so arrived tired and ready to collapse. Luckily we were able to get into our room early, and spent much of the day sleeping. Dinner with Mama, Daddy, and Ruth Ann, followed by a dip in the pool completed our first day. The pool turned out to be a great source of exercise and relaxation, as well as a way to cool off. As the week wore on - and the weather heated up - we were glad it was there!

  

Larry came in the following day. We went by Mama and Daddy's house to say hello before he went to bed (darn red-eye flights!), and, as we left, I tripped over an uneven spot in the sidewalk and went down face-first. Luckily, my glasses took the brunt of the fall and saved my face. Somehow, they didn't break, but did get scratched up. Guess new glasses are in my future when we get home... I skinned up my left side a bit, but thankfully no great harm was done, just embarrassment. Good thing I didn't land farther to my left - a fire ant bed was waiting to greet me mere inches away!

 

Susan and Tom had us over for dinner that night, and we had a lovely time with Mama, Daddy, Megan,  Ruth Ann, and Mrs. Wiggins joining us. It was good to see Susan's mom, now living with them,  recovering after her stroke. Susan and Tom are always gracious hosts, and this was no exception. Everything was so tasty, and I brought her dessert recipe home with me to try another time. Strawberries and whipped cream on a shortbread crust. Yum!

Time catching up with my parents was great, but, being on vacation, we looked for things to do on our former home turf. One day we took the girls to a water park in Gulf Shores, Waterville USA. They had a blast on all the water slides. I enjoyed the wave pool, the Lazy River, and lounging with my book. 

    

On the way home, we met my parents and Ruth Ann at Tacky Shack on the Causeway for some seafood. While there, who should we run into but former Margaret Street neighbor, Jimmy Dyess. We wouldn't have known him, but he recognized us and came over to introduce himself. Talk about a blast from the past!

Another trip to the past occurred one evening as we gathered for dinner at the Mellow Mushroom with high school friends and family members as yet unseen. It was great fun to share pizza and beer with Leannah, Laura, Janie, Ginger, Jay, and Tricia. 

A highlight for lunch was the Galilee Cafe, a Mediterranean restaurant that's a favorite with my parents. It was tasty!

 

One afternoon was spent downtown. Larry took the girls to the Exploreum while I met my friend, Mary Ellen Burch at the Host Gallery, owned by her sister-in-law. It was great to visit with her, and the gelato we had afterward was a nice treat, too. Sadly, I recently learned that the gallery is now closed. So glad I got there when I did...

Downtown Mobile looked really good this visit. Things looked prosperous, and we enjoyed looking at the area as a tourist would. We admired the historic buildings and landmarks, the beauty and grace of Bienville Square, remnants of Mardi Gras, and public art and flower beds.

     

former Demeranville Florist

former Haunted Bookstore

   

     

On the way back to West Mobile, we drove through some older neighborhoods, and past some favorite haunts...

  

Still playing tourist, we visited Langan Park, named after my cousin, former Mobile mayor, Joe Langan.

     

Not to play favorites, I noted that the Mobile airport's alter ego is Bates Field - no relation that we know of.

 

We also noticed with interest things we took for granted as kids growing up here that are absent in the Pacific Northwest: 

  

And, although we have beautiful trees and lots of lush plants in Oregon, there are indiginous plants here that I do miss....

Stately oak tree at Magnolia Cemetery

Crape Myrtles in full bloom

magnolia tree in a front yard

Some that I don't...

 

 

And some new to the area since my time!

Mama threw Sarah a fabulous graduation party, and we spent a few days at Dauphin Island before heading back home. But those event deserve their own posts!

On our way to the airport we stopped my Mama and Daddy's for a final good-bye and found Daddy on a ladder cleaning his gutters! Good thing he didn't fall in that fire ant bed!

ACMA Graduation 2012

  

June 9, 2012. Graduation Day. A red letter day for Sarah, and, indeed our whole family. We arrived at the school Sarah had attended for the last seven years, aware that this would be our last visit. It was a bittersweet moment, filled with pride and wistfulness. 

 

Tickets were in high demand, as the PAC has limited seating, and space was at a premium.

The ceremony began with ACMA's traditional bagpipe processional.



Speakers were many, and included Theresa Reiser, the student body president; student honoree Dominic Paul; staff honoree, Math teacher and new dad, Mr. Bertram; Valedictorian Caroline MacDonald; and Mr. Johnson, ACMA's principal. Beaverton's new Superintendent, Jeff Rose, was present, seemed impressed (and a bit confused at times, with some of ACMA's graduation traditions) and offered a few words of support to the graduates, as well.



As one would expect of a performing arts school, there were numerous performances - classical orchestra, jazz band, combined orchestras, advanced vocal ensemble, and a student band who auditioned for the honor of performing at Graduation -  all adding to our pride in the talent this school has produced. The lobby area displayed visual works by this year's seniors, Sarah included.

Finally, all formalities, speakers, and musical entertainment aside, the moment we'd been waiting for - the awarding of diplomas! - arrived. The ceremony was impressively well-rehearsed and, finally, Sarah strode across the stage with great confidence. It truly was a proud moment for us to see her in her cap and gown, three cords around her neck, accepting her diploma. She also received two Pathway Endorsements, one in Drawing and Painting,  the other in Ceramics and Sculpture - much like a double major.  Only a dozen or so could claim that accomplishment. Well done, Sarah!

     

Cake and punch were served in the lobby, and flashes filled the area as pictures with family, teachers and friends froze the moment for years to come.

Celebrants spilling out from the PAC on a beautiful day for Graduation

Sisters!

Emily is proud of her sister

Proud parents

The family

Sarah and Cate with art teacher and mentor, Mr. Brandau

Felice Moskowitz - Ohana teacher for five years

Sarah and Mrs. Heymann

Jenalyn's Hawaiian heritage on display! 

Sarah and Jenalyn

Sarah, Jenalyn, Nicole, and Joanna

Sarah and Maricruz

Sarah with Naomi

Friends!

Brenda and Sarah

The two Sarahs

One more unique ACMA tradition: seniors leave their mark on the school by creating a permanent piece of art in the school halls. This octopus, designed and painted by this year's class, includes all their names hidden within.

Eventually, the celebrations ended and it was time for us to head off to dinner and home again to transition to the big grad party for students that night. Heading to the parking lot, I couldn't help but feel that while we were leaving high school behind, we were walking towards new experiences, yet to be discovered. Here's to the future!

Senior Awards and Recognition

As I sat in ACMA's Performing Arts Center waiting for the Senior Awards and Recognition Ceremony to begin, I realized it was one of the last times I would be there. I was totally unprepared for the wellspring of emotion I felt, and fought to keep it from springing to the surface.

As the ceremony began and the senior class stats were shared, I felt an enormous amount of pride for these 82 young men and women, some of whom I know not at all, others who have accompanied Sarah on this journey for seven years now. It mattered not; I felt a connection to them all. Here are some of the reasons I celebrated for them:

• This class was awarded a total of $1.4 million in scholarships!
• All but five are attending college. What of these five? One will dance with the  Philadelphia Ballet; another is moving his already successful  photography business to New York City; one is joining the Air Force and will be serving our country in the military; another is teaching English in Costa Rica; and the last has been hired as an assitant producer for the locally-produced TV show, Portlandia. Not too shabby!

I had no expectation of Sarah receiving an award, so was thrilled when she became the recipient of this year's Book Arts Award. Mrs. Heymann, who is retiring this year, made some very nice remarks about Sarah in her introduction. She tried to keep us guessing as to who the actual recipient was, but I figured it out pretty quickly. The giveaways?

• Quiet student
• Positive work ethic, hard worker
• Book Arts piece was a Gold key winner in Scholastic Arts competition
• Member of the group whose dress won a Gold Key, as well
• Her Book Arts piece is currently on display in a professional art exhibit in Hillsboro

Added up, it was obvious that Sarah was the winner. Mrs. Heymann has always been supportive of and complimentary of Sarah and her Book Arts work. Indeed, Sarah does seem to have a real talent, an exactness, in that area. I was glad Mrs. Heymann was able to give her final Book Arts award to Sarah before she retired.

Many of Sarah's friends received awards, as well; one friend, Naomi, was named as the class Salutatorian. It made me feel proud that Sarah has been part of such a high-achieving circle.

A large part of the ceremony was the awarding of cords to be worn with cap and gown at Graduation. Sarah was presented with three (another proud moment!):

• Gold: National Honor Society
• Maroon: National Arts Honor Society
• White: Honor Scholar (at least a 3.5 GPA, A on Capstone, 60 hrs. community service, 2 years or more of a world language, completion of a pathway endorsement)

The only cord she didn't earn, since she took Spanish as her language, was the National Japanese Honor Society. Only two students earned all four cords. Pretty impressive!

Aside from awards, highlights of the assembly were a Slam poetry reading by Allison Stein and a performance by the unofficial Pep Band, consisting of good old Mr. Brandau, Katie PeBenito, and former ACMA student, Troy S. They were absolutely hilarious!

I wiped the tears from my eyes as I left the auditorium, so proud of my accomplished daughter, hoping I would be able to hold it together for Graduation, just a few days away.

Sarah's Capstone

Capstone is the senior project at ACMA that acts as a culminating event celebrating the student's life, dreams, and lessons learned thus far. It is a year-long effort, includes an art component, and in our house, resulted in blood sweat, tears, and months of frustration. Was it worth it in the end? Absolutely!

One thing that was so hard for Sarah was coming up with a method of presentation. She didn't want to stand and just talk for 50 minutes; that's just not her style or personality. She wanted to do something that would be unique, but that she would be comfortable doing and would get her message across. What message was that? Well, that was another source of frustration. What to do, what to do?

We brainstormed ideas, she'd kind of like one or another, then decide that wasn't what she wanted to go with. We'd brainstorm some more, and go through the whole process again, and again, and again. Repeatedly, she consulted her teacher/sponsor, Mr. Brandau and her mentor, Kim Smith, but still lacked a clear direction. The indecision and frustration was getting to all of us.

One idea that Sarah kept coming back to was the concept of a gallery exhibit of her life. In the end, it was the concept that won out and came to fruition in the form of Capstone. Sarah's premise was that we surround ourselves with objects that are significant to us, and that each of these objects has a story to tell. She decided to gather these objects that held significance to her and curate them into a exhibit that represented her life. Incorporated into this exhibit of objects would be pieces of art work that she'd done. These wouldn't necessarily be her best pieces of art, but those which signified a turning point or an epiphany that impacted her art and her relationship to it.

One thing I realized in the process is that objects of significance vary from the perspective of different people. At one point, Sarah, sensing she needed more objects for display, asked me (her mother, after all!) to walk through the house with her and help find things that she could include. Almost without fail, the things I saw as significant - Science Fair projects, report cards, baby blanket, Halloween costumes I'd made - weren't the things that were meaningful to her. It was an eye-opener to realize that the things that were significant to me in her life weren't necessarily the same things that held significance to her.

In the end, she chose such things as:

• snowglobes from different places she's visited
• stuffed dolls, etc. she'd made
• knitting projects
• Girl Scout scrapbooks (the only photographs she allowed)
• self-portraits she'd done from Kindergarten to the present
• her scoliosis brace
• certain art pieces, including early art and those produced at JumpstART
• art supplies

As part of the process, Sarah researched curation and taught herself what she needed to know to turn these random items into a well-thought-out exhibit. The afternoon before, the whole family showed up to help her get everything displayed. We were her minions and she was the boss, having us clear the space, directing us as to which display tables, pedestals, easels, etc. she needed, where to place each one, what was to be hung at what height, and which tag went with its accompanying object. Every single item on display had a tag backed in black, and random stories about objects were scattered about the display.

Capstone Day! Ready or not, it was here! Her exhibit area was the lobby of the Performing Arts Center at school, and her audience was arriving along with those attending a presentation inside the auditorium. We hadn't anticipated that her exhibit would be viewed not only by her own attendees, but also by those attending Capstone presentations occurring in the PAC all day long. It was pretty cool to listen to comments and see interest on the faces of those unexpected viewers.

Mr. Brandau gave a very nice introduction, describing Sarah's growth as a person and as an artist in her time at ACMA. I had tears in my eyes listening to him talk about my daughter and the capable person she has become - and I couldn't agree more.



Sarah then began her presentation by giving her audience  - students from 6th-12th grade, her friends, teachers, family members, and my good friend, Joan - an overview of her concept of objects and their meaning to us. She then invited us to spend twenty minutes or so viewing her self-guided tour. We were invited to complete an evaluation form she'd designed, then come back together for discussion afterward.

I have to admit, I did a bit of eavesdropping, and really enjoyed hearing the comments and insightful discussion that occurred while people viewed her exhibit. She'd touched a nerve, both among people she knew and those who were there out of obligation. Both groups viewed it differently, yet each got something out of it, and learned a bit about my daughter in the process.

There followed more comments from Sarah, and questions, including a discussion of why certain objects were included. I was so proud of my normally introverted daughter, and impressed with her poised, confident, effective, and self-assured style of presentation. She did a fabulous job! Mr. Brandau apparently agreed, commenting that it was so much more than he's pictured, and definitely an "A" Capstone. Whew!