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Category Archives: Words & Numbers

Memorable 4th

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On this day each year, we gather with family and friends to commemorate the anniversary of the signing of our Declaration of Independence. With vision and courage, our Founders stated unequivocally to the world: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” These were literally revolutionary concepts, and they fundamentally changed the course of human history. [ …]

America is a work in progress, and we have strived through decades of challenge and change to become what our Founders envisioned on our first Independence Day. As we continue that endeavor, let us work together to create an America that remains the world’s strongest force for peace, justice, and freedom. Let us work for an America that is not driven apart by differences but instead is united around share values and respect for our diversity. Let us work for an America in which every one of us, without regard to race or religious belief or gender or station in life, can achieve our dreams. In this way we will best pay tribute to those who […] pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to guarantee our freedom.

— 42nd President William J. Clinton

(delivered fifteen Fourth of Julys ago)

 

Quotes for the Day

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“The camera is a remarkable instrument. Saturate yourself with your subject, and the camera will all but take you by the hand and point the way.”

“We are in a privileged and sometimes happy position. We see a great deal of the world. Our obligation is to pass it on to others.”

— Margaret Bourke-White,

American photojournalist, born today in 1904

(And in her spirit, do check out this recent coverage in the Post and on DCist of Catalogue nonprofit Critical Exposure — which, in linking arts and advocacy, teaches kids about their singular power behind the camera.)

Quotes for Today

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A few choice words from post-Impressionist painter Paul Gauguin, who was born today in 1848:

“Go on working, freely and furiously, and you will make progress.”

“Poetry seems to come of itself, without effort, and I need only let myself dream a little while painting to suggest it.”

“Art: a mad search for individualism.”

In that spirit, take a moment today to learn more about our visual arts non-profits — who recognize how color, creation, and canvas indeed spark progress, personal and societal.

Quote for Tuesday

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“On this day, we memorialize them all. We memorialize our first patriots, blacksmiths, farmers, slaves and freed men who never knew the independence they won with their lives. We memorialize the armies of men — and women disguised as men — black and white, who fell in apple orchards and corn fields in a war that saved our union. […]

“The patriots we memorialize today sacrificed not only all they had but all they would ever know. They gave of themselves until they had nothing more to give. […]

“We remember that the blessings we enjoy as Americans came at a dear cost. Our presence in a free society bears testimony to their enduring legacy. Our nation owes a debt to its fallen heroes that we can never fully repay. But we can honor their sacrifice, and we must. We must honor it in our own lives by holding their memories close to our hearts, and heeding the example they set.”

President Obama

Memorial Day, May 30, 2011

Arlington National Cemetery

Quote for Monday

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Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.

— Marian Wright Edelman (1939-Present)

Free the child’s potential, and you will transform him into the world.

— Maria Montessori (1870-1952)

This week, as countless high school seniors decide where they will spend their college years, we would like to recognize our Education non-profits — many of whom work tirelessly to remove all obstacles on the road to college for young scholars in Greater Washington. In the words of Rassan Salandy of The Posse Foundation‘s National Office, we are “working to develop a new kind of leadership network in the United States — one that will better represent the nation’s shifting demographics at the tables where decisions are made.” It’s a truly crucial assignment!

Quotes for Monday

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“To become truly immortal, a work of art must escape all human limits: logic and common sense will only interfere. But once these barriers are broken, it will enter the realms of childhood visions and dreams.”

— Giorgio de Chirico (1888-1978)

“It is not enough to know your craft — you have to have feeling. Science is all very well, but for us imagination is worth far more.”

— Edouard Manet (1832-1883)

Quote for the Day

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“Young people can learn from my example that something can come from nothing. What I have become is the result of my hard efforts.”

— Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)

“Music is a higher relevation than all wisdom and philosophy.”

— Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

“Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.”

— Victor Hugo (1802-1885)

Numbers for the Day

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Of the 50 million students currently in American public schools, only 18% have access to dance education. (National Dance Education Association)

Of those students, only 7% are taught by a certified dance specialist, rather than a sports coach or general educator. (American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance)

Most dancers begin training between the ages of 5 and 15 and many have their first professional audition before they turn 18. (Bureau of Labor Statistics: Dances and Choreographers)

In sum? Kids get serious about dance early and get hooked earlier than that, even if they don’t intend to pursue a full-time dance career. And as the NDEO reports, “participation in high-quality arts education programs nurtures persistence, resilience, achievement” in numerous arenas. Yet many students never have the chance to carve out a space on the dance stage.

… So this “Numbers for the Day” is dedicated to Catalogue’s innovative dance companies and movement–focused non-profits, who keep that stage alive and accessible.

Numbers for the Day

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Forest area makes up 33% of the total land area in the United States.

21 out of 822 native American fish species now are extinct and 2/3 of the nation’s freshwater mussels are at risk of extinction.

Less than 1% of all the world’s water can be used for drinking. About 97% is undrinkable and glaciers and ice caps hold the other 2%.

… These “Numbers for the Day” are dedicated to our vital environmental non-profits, who are working to keep Greater Washington’s rivers clean and our wildlife healthy.