Pencil Pines

March 23, 2020 Len Metcalf

What an extraordinary time…

How quickly things can change…

In the midst of such anger, sadness and fear look for the positives to strengthen ourselves.

For the second day in a row I woke up to the most beautiful quiet and serenity. No cars or people, no planes, no pollution. Birds singing, rain falling, lovely temperatures.

As an introvert and an empath I no longer need to go out and face others. I get my personal space back. No longer are people in my space or in my face.

My motivation to work soars. Today I am rewriting the first article that I ever wrote that gained a wide readership. That was probably twenty years ago that I wrote it. It went viral with just one influencer telling others to read it. I live in hope that one day that will happen again. I will publish it to the members of Len’s Club. I will record a new presentation for the members too. It’s about how as visual artists we can learn from musicians. It’s the article that was first published by Peter Eastway in Better Photography that ended up launching my love for writing.

In the four days since launching Len’s Club we have enough new members for me to feel like I have a group of students I can start to teach. It also means I don’t have to race down to Centrelink to register for government support. I am truely thankful.

It’s amazing because I have been working on the idea for an online school for fifteen years when I first did my diploma in online education at Tafe. There was one thing that no one told me, or perhaps I didn’t hear or understand at the time. And that is you need to run it like you do when you are with people. So for all those years I was trying to figure out how to create a linear course of something that I do that is incredibly responsive to my students needs.

The best educational courses aren’t planned to the ‘Nth’ degree. They are always a work in progress. Much like art.

Asking teachers to put up and design ahead of time isn’t as effective as creating content on the fly. The best education is responsive to the students needs and interests. Not predetermined without consideration of their real interests. Having a teacher sitting there conversing with you is vastly different to a course that was created years ago.

This is the key to the flaws in the educational system. There must be built in flexibility for teachers to adapt to the students in front of them. Curriculums that are descriptive don’t help. Ones that help give us general guidance on where to aim for, some ideas on how for those that are unsure, but are open enough that the teacher can teach what they think best suits their learners today.

So, I hope that is how my online distance educational community school will be different. It is responsive to those enrolled. If you have been lucky enough to have been in one of my classes you know that you will that I work exceptionally hard to make sure you get exactly what you need right now.

I had to put my whole life on hold. My income lost. I was going off to the Tarkine, Kangaroo Island and Western Australia. I have now managed to turn that freeing up of my time to something very special. Not that I hadn’t been working on this for a very long time. I had planned the launch date of the 20th March months ago. I freed up the beginning of this year and Clair and I have been working on it for months.

I can’t believe the response. Thank you. I can’t believe my own enthusiasm either. It has lifted me out of a feeling of overwhelming sadness. What’s happening in the world is overwhelming. Doing something positive for yourself and others is one key to emotional survival and inner strength.

In this uncertain world, there is hope. New things will start. New opportunities will arise. Our society has been stressed and abused for a long time now. As has the natural environmental world that supports us. How come we keep forgetting that nature provides us with our lives, our health, our water, our air and food.

This is a wonderful opportunity for us to recover, reflect, rebuild and regrow. It’s a blessing in disguise.

Please don’t misinterpret me here, I am as equally as horrified, scared, angry and disappointed as most are. I would never wish the sadness of the loss of life that’s around us on anyone.

I have been socially distancing myself for a while now. Trying to get used to not touching others and unnecessary common objects.

Being isolated from my son is the hardest. Being verbally abused by his mother for wanting to see him broke me. Driving past his house in tears was my lowest point in years.

So, you should start something. My last free weekly exercise photography exercise took this idea as well. You can read it here if you like: https://www.lensschool.com/lens-weekly-photography-exercises/lsdex11iyzo8o1tmy6m98dcptohi5u

Start something for you. Start something for others. Start something for your soul. It is the opportunity of a lifetime to be given time.

Here are some ideas:

Start a heath kick
Start writing
Work on that book you have in the back of your mind
Offer to help others in your community. Fit and young, go shopping for the those that shouldn’t be leaving their homes
Exercise - my daily walks have increased in length and moved into the night
Create art
Make music, learn an instrument
Read that stack of books on your shelf you haven’t had time for
Build that contraption you dreamed of
Plant a veggie garden
Take photographs and share them
Ring someone and talk to them
Learn a new skill, up skill or study
Dream, dare to dream and plan
Meditate, do mindfulness, listen to affirmations and guided meditations
Start a blog or a website
Sleep and rest
Join Len’s Club and improve your photography at home

Oh, I have work to do. Do you know I type this blog on my phone in bed every morning I have time. So I had better get up too.

You can subscribe to Len’s Club here https://www.lensschool.com/subscribe#join

You can watch and listen to me talk about it here http://lensschool.com/lensclub

Founding Membership is only available for another two weeks.

Stay safe, socially distance yourself for the sake of others too.