Monarch School, San Diego

Did you know there is a school for homeless children here in San Diego? Yes, a K-12 school for children who do not have an address or permanent home. This would include children living on our streets or in temporary housing. These children attend Monarch School for a few months or for years. I didn’t know that until I was invited to provide an after-school workshop as a visiting artist last summer. I didn’t know how I would feel when we went around the room saying our names and what kind of art we liked. After the fifteen high-schoolers told me they liked hip-hop, writing, painting, drawing, I stumbled at my own name and this is how I felt: like I knew nothing. Fortunately, I had notes and remembered our project was to draw labyrinths on beach rocks and then build a labyrinth outdoors. Fortunately there were these amazing teachers in the room. When I emptied my shoe box of the smooth beach stones, they were gone. (Why did I not bring a truckload so they could have plenty?) Then I put out the metallic markers and they were gone. I drew a big labyrinth on the white board and described the ancient form used throughout the centuries all over the world. We went outside and they built the labyrinth before I could turn around and then they danced and did cartwheels and placed their hand-drawn labyrinths within the larger outdoor piece.

When the girls sat down in a circle, I edged in so I could be a part of their group. “Who is the last person you cried over?” was the question one girl posed to each of the other girls and then came the stories barely audible to me of their loss.

And then a teacher pulled out cupcakes and said it was time to celebrate birthdays. We sang Happy Birthday to the birthday kids of the month. And then my time was up and I went back to my art studio.