District Administrators Corner

by Loren Glasbrenner,  River Valley School District Administrator  Anyone that has moved, or has helped a kid move, knows about all the “stuff” that is required to be packed up, no matter how long they are moving. And, for some reason, many of us feel there is “stuff” that might be needed (some day) so we pack it away and keep it. In general, we all have a lot of “stuff”... and it may mean something personal to us as individuals, but not mean anything to anyone else. And, if we need more “stuff,” we run conveniently to a store that has tons of “stuff”--nicer “stuff,” fancier “stuff,” better “stuff.” Recently, I was slapped in the face with how the innocence of youth doesn’t give a hoot about keeping “stuff.” Little people are sharers. They are givers. They find joy in gifting. As I was visiting the Early Learning Center in Plain at the end of the school year, a little snip of a girl came running down the hall with a flower in her hand, raised it up to me, smiled, and squeaked, “It’s a honeysuckle - eat it!” As a bigger man that is not used to little voices being so assertive, all I could do was smile. After a few moments, I tucked the stem of the flower into a top buttonhole to display her gift. But, I should have listened more carefully, I guess.... Nope. That was not going to be the end. “It’s sweet - like honey - EAT IT!” I blinked, smiled wider, giggled and promised her that I would later, but that I wanted to enjoy it for a little while before I ate it. My young flower-bearing friend then showed me her pockets full of honeysuckles that she was going to take to her class, share with her friends, and make sure her teacher got one to eat too. Then off she skipped. As I exited the building and shared my story, everyone giggled. They each had a honeysuckle too and were also asked to share in the joy. Our student had openly shared with every adult and had declared the importance of finding the sweet nectar of the flower with each. She was, without question, sharing her joy with everyone. To be clear, honeysuckles are a native plant to Wisconsin. There are a few varieties that are woodland species, but the honeysuckles in Southern Wisconsin are invasive. The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has eradication processes to help get rid of honeysuckle cultivars. Thankfully, what our kindergarten flower girl was sharing was actually columbine. It was not a honeysuckle. Columbine is a woodland native that has an edible nectar cavity at the base of the flower that you can bite off the tip and taste a drop of nectar. The species is well established and grows wild in side yards, woods, and ditches. It is a beautiful plant and hummingbirds are very fond of the nectar as well. Information on native columbine can be found at https://wildseedproject.net/2019/05/red-columbine/. And, it is edible.  At the end of the day, the memory of the joy from the flower girl is more valuable than “stuff.” Education is like that...you can have all the best resources but without the joy of learning, it just becomes more “stuff.” The River Valley School District has an incredible reputation of fostering an atmosphere of trust. Most students enjoy being at school and sharing the days with their friends. Some even bring “stuff” to share. So, I now have a dried columbine blossom sitting in my office windowsill. One of the nectar buds is gone--and to some, I keep the silliest “stuff.”