We were able to catch up on some must needed sleep before departing for Walden Pond in the late morning. All of us have been greatly inspired, both individually and collectively, by the works of Henry David Thoreau, particularly his classic, Walden, or Life in the Woods. Being that Walden Pond was so close to our afternoon meeting in Summerville, we simply had to take the detour. It was incredible to see, first-hand, the site where almost a century and a half ago Thoreau embarked on a two-year experiment in simple living. We had a wonderful time picnicking near the foundation remnants of Thoreau's cabin, and striking the thinker pose with a bronze replica of the man himself. We also signed a rock with one of our favorite Thoreau quotes for a rock garden that was formed as a living history of all the visitors who have flocked to Walden Pond. Here are a couple more of our favorite Thoreau quotes!
"Do not worry if you have built your castles in the air. They are where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."
"If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away."
We then got on the road to Summerville for our meeting with Edward P. Clapp who currently serves as a consultant for arts and arts education organizations while pursuing his doctorate at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education. We were particularly interested in meeting with Clapp because of his 20 under 40 project. Concerned for the future of arts and arts education leadership, Clapp prompted all people under 40 to submit essays about new and innovative ideas and solutions to combat the impending problems that the arts sector in our country faces. People were inspired to submit due largely to the passionate essay he wrote entitled This Is Our Emergency, which has been a great galvanizing force for our own project. He has chosen twenty essays to publish in an anthology in the hopes that it will legitimize the talent of young leaders by bringing their ideas out of the margins and into the forefront of this dialogue. Though he couldn't share too much about the ideas, as the anthology is yet to be published, we were able to gain from him a deeper understanding of the factors that play into institutional dysfunction from a lack of cross-mentorship to the need to embrace the polymathic nature of our generation.
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