Last week I secured a room at a local nonprofit (a school for the arts shutdown due to the pandemic). My intent: to carve out time and space for a writing project.
As I shared previously, my kids wanted to join me for this retreat. We made a deal, that they can come down and hangout after I had a period of time for myself, and no screens or Internet connection while on site. They agreed.
The first day, they showed up without a minute to spare. After searching the room (and of course finding the nonprofit's cooler with soda inside), they decided to head out and explore the grounds. I stayed in and wrote.
The second day was unlike the first. I sent a message to my wife, checking if they were coming. "Oh, they forgot about it. I'll remind them." They eventually showed, put more money in the bucket for another soda out of the cooler, and then read a book or drew sketches outside.
The final two days, they were no shows.
After some reflection, I realized that this was not their commitment. They had no purpose to being there other than hanging out with their dad (plus the sodas). On the other hand, I had clear intentions: rent out this space to devote my time and attention to a meaningful project.
This space was mine to arrange within constraints. I could sit facing the windows if I felt I wouldn't be distracted, or I could position myself to the side of them. Even though I made a commitment to write, I could either write by hand in my journal or on my laptop. When I worked on the manuscript, I could revisit the draft of the introduction or keep going with Chapter 1. It was up to me in how to engage within a commitment to write.
With so much out of our control right now, it was refreshing to have some voice and choice in anything. Much of it was setting up the conditions to learn in this manner: the environment, the resources, the opportunities. How can we create (and co-create) these conditions with teachers and students?
After returning the key to the nonprofit Friday evening, I came home to find my son sketching at my writing spot. Sharpies, copy paper, and enough table space were all that was needed. More opportunity, less direction. The conditions offered an invitation to create, and he accepted.
I will be exploring the conditions for creating and learning within literacy on the newsletter this week. Sign up below!
Photo by Andrew Neel on Unsplash