November 2019 Issue

Be Grateful

Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family: Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one. Jane Howard Our tribe, it’s our family. Our Bella Family. Each month new members are added to an ever-growing network of friends. Each new member adds richness to our story and in-turn a level of gratitude we could never have foreseen. New contributors. New stories. New connections. We like to think of each contributor to Bella as a precious thread woven into the fabric of Aiken. In every issue of Bella we are privileged to tell the stories of those who impact our community.

Gratefulness + Happiness

Happiness is not getting everything you want; rather it’s being grateful for what you have. The Aiken characteristic for the month of November is gratefulness. As Thanksgiving approaches, there is heightened attention to thankfulness and expressing the things we are grateful for. Gratefulness is the key to happiness, and humility is the key to peace. Gratefulness is self-less. It’s related to love and peace, and achieving it takes awareness and understanding. There is someone I wanted to recognize this month for gratefulness as I have witnessed her exhibiting gratefulness on numerous occasions through the authentic show of thankfulness, happiness, and appreciation in all she does. A humble smile and peaceful

A Tradition of Learning | Journalism in the Classroom

This year at Leavelle McCampbell Middle School we have taken our journalism class and developed it to its full potential. As a school, we have been challenging ourselves to use technology more often and strategically in our classroom. Our goal for this school year is to stream a daily morning video announcement throughout the entire school building and to post our newsletter through a blogging website. Our main purpose is to show positivity within the school while reaching these goals. Our morning announcements have taken off in a positive and effective direction. We have implemented mandatory announcements using fun trends, community activities, and every student. For example, we have applied

A Tradition of Inspiration | Bella’s Featured Artist: Julie Adams

Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time. ~ Thomas Merton In her second story studio, Julie Adams was energized as the portrait of her son came to life on canvas. It was a new style for her; an oil finished in pencil. It gave the impression that the painting was not quite completed, “like my son,” she mused. “He’s not finished yet, as a person. None of us are.” Then she learned that English artist Mark Demsteader was gaining fame and popularity in his country for the using same technique; her enthusiasm grew. “That’s what I was doing, too. When I saw his work

A Tradition of Taste | Turkeys on the Table

When we think of holiday traditions we think of Christmas, Thanksgiving, turkey, sides, parades, mistletoe, Christmas trees, egg nog, carols, stockings, presents, and all else that comes along. The definition of tradition is the transmission of customs and beliefs from generation to generation. The most meaningful traditions are those we create and celebrate with family and friends. Those traditions we celebrate all originate from older traditions and customs we have in common, such as Thanksgiving. We all know Thanksgiving as the traditional holiday we all celebrate, but do you know about how the holiday came about for the entire country? In 1846, editor and author Sarah Josepha Hale, considered the

Speaking with Authentic Voices

Like the old “Change Your Voice” book itself, I sometimes feel woefully worn and dog-eared and torn around the edges. But, perhaps like the book, I have old truths that I am meant to speak, in a voice to be made worth hearing. It was an old book. Not rare or antique, but rather vintage. Just old enough to smell of aging library glue and dried damp, and to have sepia-toned edges and dog-eared corners that marked passages now long-forgotten in spite of the inspiration they must have once incited. It was a book my father had given to me, but I don’t remember why. It is entitled: “Change Your

A Tradition of Community | Aiken’s One Table Food for the Body and Soul

Until you see the smiling faces hovering over steaming plates of food, until you hear the laughter and music drifting through the Alley, until you brush your arm against a friend you’ve met for the first time as you reach for your fork, you cannot understand what happens at Aiken’s One Table on Thanksgiving Day. More than just eating mashed potatoes and turkey dripping with gravy, more than splurging on spicy pumpkin pie and chocolate cupcakes, Aiken’s One Table is a feast of fellowship, friends, and fun. When sliding your chair forward to the table, people leave their worries and differences behind to celebrate the holiday of gratefulness and thanksgiving.