Blown Away by Plimoth Plantation

One of the most rewarding experiences I have as a teacher is taking students to historic sites and using the locations as my classroom.  In fact, it is the whole reason that One if By Land Adventures even exists.  I have always felt the classroom walls to be confining, but by having the kids walk in the footsteps of those that came before, short of building a time machine, I think it makes it come alive much more.

For the past several years, it has been a privilege to take my students to Boston to discover the roots of the American Revolution.  Along the way, we also hunt down witches in Salem and venture out to Plymouth to hang with the pilgrims at Plimoth Plantation.


Each trip brings its own unique experiences and this year was definitely one that I will not soon forget.  First off, we saw snow!  To many of you reading this that may not seem all that mid blowing, but to a bunch of Florida kids it was like an alien environment.  For many, it was the first time they had ever seen snow and they delighted in running around in it and trying to make their very first snow balls, which of course they ended up throwing at me.

Despite the snow, I think the thing that the kids will remember the most is the experience we had at Plimoth Plantation.  Being from Florida, we had lived through a number of hurricanes, but the noreaster that blew through on Plimoth day was truly memorable.  Winds were lashing us at about 60 miles per hour and ponchos were literally being shredded left and right.  We were all running around trying to find the pilgrims who had taken cover in the homes.  I have to give the kids alot of credit though, even though it was probably the worst weather we had ever experienced on a Boston trip, they hung in there and tried to learn as much as possible.  One kid biffed in the mud and a group of kindly pilgrim ladies sat him down by the hearth and let him dry off while telling him and the others stories about their lives at Plimoth.  I will never forget the site of the kid as steam was rising up all around him.  Luckily we were able to change our clothes before the flight home.

It is my hope and dream that One if by Land Adventures will allow me to broadcast live field trips like this to classrooms across the United States.  For many, actually going to the sites might not be a possibility, but it is my intention with One if by Land to bring the field trip to them.  Am seeking support and like minded people to get the adventure off the ground!  Please contact me to join up!

Lincoln Lives!

Well, I finally came full circle and finally got to see Lincoln.  I have been anticipating the film for the last few years even when it was in the development stages and Liam Neeson was attached to pot ray Lincoln.  A couple of years ago I visited the Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield, Illinois and just missed Daniel Day Lewis researching.  Apparently he was walking out the door as I was walking in.  I have always had a knack for somewhat bad timing.

Anyway, did I like the film?  Absolutely!  Steven Spielberg and the crew managed to pull off quite a feat in having history come alive without resorting to crazy embellishments.  History was allowed to speak for itself.  Was it all totally accurate?  Of course not, but the minor inaccuracies do not do much to warrant the film trash.

What we have is a Lincoln that is accessible to us all.  We have Lincoln as a leader, a husband, and a father.  What we see is a vulnerable Lincoln wrapped in a blanket, deep in thought, not the Disneyesque version with the booming baritone voice.  We are able to see Lincoln as an actual human being and not as some "historical figure" devoid of flaws and human emotion.

I think film can be a powerful medium to help in teaching history.  Let's be honest, for the average American, film is the most accessible medium.  I have sometimes been criticized for using movies in my teaching, but I think even bad or inaccurate films can lead to healthy discussion and debate about the importance of the real story.   The Patriot is a perfect example of this.  Yes, it is a very entertaining movie, but can one get beyond the dramatic imagery and special effects to get to the real heart of the actual event?  It is something that I have long shared with my own students.  GO BEYOND and discover the real story rather than what Hollywood dramatizes.  What I have always tried to get across to students is the importance of critically analyzing what they are watching.

I also believe that the true power of films like Lincoln and others is the fact that it might provoke people to actually learn more about the subject.  How great is it that "Team of Rivals" upon which Lincoln is based is currently enjoying renewed popularity?  Perhaps it will also encourage people to visit Springfield as well.

All in all, I believe Lincoln was well worth the wait and will only get better with a repeated viewing.  A second go round will most likely make me appreciate it even more.  Get your tickets!

Etched in History

One of the things that I love about visiting historic sites are the personal things that are sometimes left behind.  While visiting the Old Manse in Concord, Mass. I was drawn to a window while on the tour.  It was an etching by Nathaniel Hawthorne and his wife done while they were renting the property.  I reads;

Man's accidents are God's purposes. Sophia A. Hawthorne 1843

Nath Hawthorne This is his study

The smallest twig leans clear against the sky

Composed by my wife and written with her diamond

Inscribed by my husband at sunset, April 3 1843. In the Gold light.

SAH

The Old Manse is an extraordinary place to visit because of the amazing history it has witnessed and the people that have walked its halls.  The home is where Ralph Waldo Emerson penned Nature which helped give birth to the Transcendentalist movement, and it is also with just yards of the iconic Old North Bridge where some of the opening shots of the American Revolution occurred.  Henry David Thoreau and Louisa May Alcott were also frequent guests to the home and often engaged in very deep conversations about the nature and purpose of life.

Honestly, the old phrase 'if these walls could talk' never seemed more appropriate.

Gotta be better than that vampire flick

I am a a tad bit embarrassed to admit that I was really excited to see Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter last summer.  I had enjoyed the book so I was expecting the movie to be pretty darn entertaining.  I found the movie to be simply just ok.  It was well made and had good production values but they left out too much to make it truly enjoyable.  What was up with changing the ending?

Anyway, I have much higher expectations of Steven Spielberg's new movie about Abraham Lincoln, titled simply "Lincoln".  It is based upon "Team of Rivals" by Doris Kearns Goodwin and chronicles the last 4 months of Lincoln's life. 

Check out the theatrical preview below!

A little AWWWWWW at Shiloh

Today while visiting Shiloh Battlefield I was really excited to see their new film in the visitors center that replaced the depressingly outdated one that they had been showing since the 1950's.  I'm sure that there were quite a few purists that were upset that the old film was scrapped but honestly it was pretty laughable even though I'm certain it was a labor of love for those who made it.

Anyway, as I was sitting there waiting for the film to begin a little kid that was at most 5 or 6 ran in with his grandparents.  To be perfectly honest I was secretly praying the kid would not sit anywhere close by because I have had many a movies be spoiled by crying or talking kids.

They sat down right behind me and I was easily charmed by the little guy's sheer enthusiasm.  He had the map out and was excitedly pointing to all the places they would go to on the battlefield.  In his ultra thick southern accent he kept asking "Paw can we go here?".  His grandfather just smiled and nodded each time, obviously enjoying the boys happiness.  When the film began he got so excited that he practically bounced out of his chair.

After the movie I saw all of them again in the museum exhibit area.  As if the kid's energy was not already infectious enough, the little guy was wearing a smaller matching version of his grandfather's boots and clomping around in them looking at all the guns and other artifacts.

I never saw them again on the actual battlefield but I can pretty much guarantee that he wore his grandparents out.  I am also sure that when the grandfather goes to bed tonight, he will do so with a big smile on his face knowing that he shared a memory that the little boy will resonate with him the rest of his life.

Spooked at the Myrtles Plantation

I have always had an interest in staying at unique and bizarre places on my road trips.  I have long wanted to stay at the Myrtles Plantation just outside of Baton Rouge, Louisiana since it is notorious for being one of the most haunted places in America.

Built around 1796, the Myrtles has had its share of tragedy, hence the hauntings.  The most famous story involves a house slave named Chloe who would constantly eavesdrop on conversations.  Some say she was very paranoid about being put into the fields and was  listening in to see if her master was planning on doing so.  At one point she was caught listening in on a top secret meeting and the master of the house not only sent her into the fields, he also sliced off her left ear as punishment.

To try to win back the favor of her master and also be put back into the house she concocted a scheme to make the family sick and then nurse them back to health.  Basically she would make herself indispensable.  One afternoon she baked a cake but added in some boiled down white oleander leaves to poison them just enough to cause them all to puke up their guts.  Well sadly for Chloe and especially the family, she added too much of the lethal concoction and she ended up killing the two small girls and the wife of the master.

After messing up royally she took off but the other slaves at the Myrtles caught her and turned her in.  the slaves thought that if she escaped then they would be held responsible for the crime.  The master of the plantation ordered that she be hung from one of the trees on the property.

It is widely reported that Chloe and the little girls haunt the grounds.  Chloe is often seen walking outside the porch area and the little girls are notorious for "playing" with the guests by bouncing on the ends of beds or pulling covers off people as they sleep.

I arrived at the Myrtles Plantation mid afternoon and was a little scared to learn that there was only one other couple staying there that evening.  I figured there would be lots of guests just hanging out.  There is always strength in numbers with these kinds of things.  What made it worse was the other couple took off and did not return till almost 10:30 so I was basically alone walking around and jumping at every single freaking sound.  When the other couple finally got back we stayed up chatting for a while until finally retiring at 1:00.

Strangely enough I fell asleep fairly fast due to being so tired.  Luckily I am also virtually blind without my glasses on so any shadows or figures in my room honestly did not have much of an audience.  After conking out for a couple of hours I was awoken by the sound of a door opening and footsteps in the hallway.  At that point I almost lost it including making a big old puddle of pee in my bed.  I waited and waited for about 15 minutes before I got up to investigate.  I opened the door and peeked out into the hall and saw no one there.  Feeling pretty confident, I slipped on my shoes and walked outside to look around the grounds a bit and it turned out that the noises I had heard were the other couple taking off in the middle of the night.  Something must have freaked them out because their car was gone.

These stupid things didn't help much

By this time it was close to 5 in the morning and there was no way I could get back to sleep being totally alone in the house.  I took out my phone and turned on every single light I could find.  I checked Facebook and of course Fruit Ninja since nothing calms an angry ghost like slicing and dicing.  Close to 5:45 I looked up toward the bathroom and saw a small dark blob that looked like the shape of a small child.  All of a sudden it darted across the floor and disappeared at the bedroom door.  Now I am sure that there are quite a few skeptics out there, but there is ZERO chance of me imagining this.  It wasn't like I saw it out of my peripheral vision or anything like that.  I stared dead on at the thing and then it darted right beside me and out the door.

Anyway, at that point I decided it was time for me to leave too.  I quickly packed up and took off into the rising sun.  I like to say that I did survive the entire night since I left right at sun up.  According to the owners quite a few people do not make it through the night.  Oprah apparently left very early one night after having an experience and just a week or so before I got there a woman fled out into the courtyard screaming because she rolled over on her bed and saw the two little girls at the side of the bed.  The night guy had to go in and pack up all her things for her.


Regardless of what time I left, I am sure that the owners got a nice chuckle since no one showed up for breakfast.  Myrtles Plantation strikes again.

I caught this very creepy pic.  Check out what looks like a figure of a woman.  Her head is very distinctive.  Chloe?

Beyond the moon

Today we lost Neil Armstrong who was a true pioneer and hero of American history.  Although he was labeled that in life, he always remained humble about walking on the moon.  I remember learning about the Apollo program in grade school and was so inspired that I saved up several weeks of allowances in order to get my first model rocket building kit.  I spent hours building and painting those rockets and then finally launching them.  With each launch I felt somehow connected to those astronauts that I so admired.  Rest in peace Mr. Armstrong and thank you for the inspiration.