Nourish beginnings, let us nourish beginnings.

Not all things are blest, but the

seeds of all things are blest.

The blessing is in the seed.

We begin as every year blessed. Perhaps our gathering today is a form of blessing for our school year -- our 10th year! A decade old!

We welcome our dear 9th graders. With some sentimentality and sense of impending loss, we honor our 12th graders, the class of 2018! And we relish the returning of our beloved 10th and 11th graders!

As your teachers, we are well versed in the idea that we are planting seeds. We hope that the ideas and the conversations and the experiences and the learning that happens each school year are seeds for your future self to harvest as nourishment and inspiration. It is no accident that we have a garden here at Carver bursting with seeds and seedlings and food to nourish us throughout the year.

Last week all the teacher and I went on a retreat in the forest,  high in the hills near Placerville. We talked and ate and folk danced and stargazed into the Milky Way! We talked a lot about language and how we speak to each other. We thought a lot about the protests this summer where speaking to each other was violent and dangerous and unproductive.

Our hope and our goal is to work together to communicate clearly, to learn to listen to each other, to learn to hear the truth of what each of us is saying. Our intention is to work together as a community to create a Safe Haven school, to develop our compassion and support of one another.

Allegra

District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert invites Sacramento County high school students to apply for the 3rd Annual Youth Academy, which is now accepting applications. Students will learn about the criminal justice system and engage in open communication between law enforcement and themselves concerning issues that affect youth today - including race as a factor in the criminal justice system, use of force, gun violence, gangs, dating violence, human trafficking, marijuana, crime scene investigation and evidence, and distracted driving. A career fair will be held at graduation. The program is open to current Sacramento County high school students. Eligible students can apply for either the South, North, East or Elk Grove/Galt area academy. They must submit a completed application, which can be downloaded at www.sacda.org. The deadline to apply is September 8, 2017.  Space is limited and on a first come, first served basis. For questions, please email [email protected].