Peace One Day - 3 Month Countdown to Peace Day 2010

I let it pass me by...

Yesterday was one of those days with a lot of little blessings in it. They were not giant fireworks so it took finishing the day to be able to reflect and realize "Wow, what a basket full of goodies today was for me." I know we can all be distracted with fluff in the day and I was guilty of letting the great things pass me by. I reflected on my day and realized I let them pass me by. Here are some of the day's magic and if you were a part of it. Thank you so very much.
My preschoolers didn't want to play they wanted to read word cards-OK that's amazing but even better is that they are all reading in Spanish! That filled my cup about half-full right there.
In my after-school class I had only seven year-old boys today. My girls were out. I had to help a customer at the front desk. I was feeling annoyed because I have no help to field these situations right now. I was out of the classroom for about 5 minutes. When I came back, my bouncy, electric, gotta-move boys were not running around or goofing off, they had taken it upon themselves to collectively make their own patterns, cut them out and had completed their projects when I returned. They were sitting in the same spots practicing telling time in Spanish! If you have one boy do that, it's very impressive but three is a large miracle and I should have kissed them all right then and there but I let pass me by. My cup is nearly full at this point.
I began my evening Adult class and have a teenager with a non-teenager. It could be an awkward situation because not even teenagers know how to interact with other teenagers on a good day but my Adult commented that she really enjoyed being in class with our teen.( I think her cup filled a little too) Then he had the moment when he realized "So you should probably really research where you are going in the world before a trip because they might have different customs in the language and you don't want to be rude right?". I only wish the greater population realized that. There's no more room in my cup at this point.
But wait...there's more. In my Level II class later in the night I have an entire family taking the Spanish together as part of my group class. This is the first group in quite some time that has completed all of the material ahead of time. They were working on the role play scenarios and I just watched and listened and was so happy for them all. They will have an amazing time on their next trip together and have joined a new sub-community in this city. They now belong to the group of people who can and do communicate in a second language. The bank employee who takes this class will make new friends and gain trust of customers and have a great big smile on her face when she can carry on with confidence and ease in Spanish. They are proficient at their level but more, they are proud and confident and can do and say things they could not 4 or 8 weeks ago. I am really proud for them and now my cup is spilling on to the table and pouring on to the floor and I am really going to miss these days come next Spring but I cherish today and all the days like it that I have had in the last 5 years. The stories that will stay in my heart are too great and I will have to start sharing them with you.
Yesterday I let those little moments pass me by but not today. My sleep was visited by the warm feeling and it woke me up and bade me to write it down.

Spectacular Kite Festival-thank you Pak Rams!

We could not have asked for a more perfect day to enjoy the annual Pak Rams Kite Festival. Culture comes to us in so many ways and this was a delicious drop in the bucket. Thank you for all the work to make my family's day so memorable. The demonstrations and the public turn out were magnificent! Now we are off to Severance to listen to a local Blues band.

More pics from Lunar New Year Celebration

Once again thank you to the Coloradoan for covering a great community event put on by a local organization and thank you to all the parents, families and friends who braved the cold, inhospitable weather. We had a great turn out and a wonderful day! The information and culture was plentiful.

Look, Mom! We're famous!

Titan Flynn, 7, watches as Anie Pelletier plays the bonang with the other members of Kyai Brojo Marto, a gamelan orchestra, Saturday during the Lunar New Year celebration at the Language Exchange of Northern Colorado in Fort Collins. (Dawn Madura/The Coloradoan)





Thanks to Marcy Miranda, who is a reporter over at the Coloradoan, our local paper did a feature on The Language Exchange and the Lunar New Year Celebration we hosted last week! She wrote a great article and even mentioned a few of our students by name. When one of our students, Galen saw the newspaper article with the picture of Titan he said, "Titan is famous!" Then he saw his name and said, "I'm famous too!" I don't think their moms have ever been so proud. More pictures to come! You can see the article here.

From what I've heard, the parents from our school collectively bought about a bajillion copies.

Thank you to Marcy and the Coloradoan!
Crystal Ferreira



Kids learn about lunar calender through trivia, crafts and music

BY Marcy Miranda • MarcyMiranda@coloradoan.com • February 21, 2010

Inside the small suite on the corner of College Avenue and Stuart Street, a large and colorful celebration was taking place Saturday morning.

More than a dozen children sat in front of Anie Pelletier, a Loveland woman who was lightly pounding on eight hollow, pot-shaped gongs made of bronze and resting on strings held by a wooden frame. The Indonesian instrument Pelletier was playing, called a bonang, emitted deep and melodic rhythms that Indonesians call gamelan music.

Pelletier and members of the Kyai Brojo Marto orchestra, which play the traditional Indonesian music, were among the approximately 30 people present at the Lunar New Year celebration hosted by the Language Exchange of Northern Colorado, 1797 S. College Ave.

“The purpose is to draw attention to other countries and cultures who use the lunar calendar,” said Dannielle North-Decunto, owner and director of the Language Exchange, an organization that offers world language classes. She said other countries beside China celebrate the Lunar New Year and Saturday’s event was an opportunity to showcase how Indonesian culture celebrates the holiday.

In addition to performances, children on Saturday also made Chinese crafts, such as paper lanterns and bamboo hats. Kids also participated in a trivia game to learn facts about China’s celebration.

As 7-year-old Galen Cotton watched two students perform the Indonesian version of the traditional dragon dance, his mother, Vicki, explained that attending cultural events such as the Lunar New Year celebration are important because they help expose Galen to other languages and cultures.

“It’s extremely important to have a multicultural world view,” Cotton said. She said she’s teaching her son to be internationally-minded and that because of it, they like to experience a lot of different cultures.

Galen is learning Spanish through the Language Exchange and has been enrolled since he was in preschool, Cotton said.

Students learning Spanish and Chinese at the school kicked off the celebration by singing a traditional Chinese New Year song in Chinese. Students from the Inner Wave Pencak Silat also gave a demonstration of pencak silat, the Indonesian style of martial arts. Pencak silat is inclusive of the other styles of martial arts, as it requires agility both on the floor and while upright, said Steve D’Aurelio, an instructor and school manager at Inner Wave.

The dragon dance performed by students of Inner Wave is typically part of the Chinese New Year celebration because it’s believed to ward off bad sprits from the previous year, North-Decunto said.

Wendell Payton from Loveland attended the event because of the connection he has with Inner Wave. He said events that give exposure to customs from other cultures are good because they help broaden people’s minds and foster understanding.

“The more we understand other people’s cultures and customs the better so we can live harmoniously and peacefully,” Payton said.