The Weight of Water
Juvenile fiction
Cassie, Kasienka in her native Poland, has just moved to England
with her Mama. Her Tata (father) had left the family with just a
short note. Despite warnings that it would not to be good to chase
after him, her mother is doing just that. When she is not working or
sleeping she marks maps and walks the streets, house to house, asking
if anyone has seen her missing husband. She barely seems to notice
her present daughter.
Cassie is not having an easy time. They live in a one room
apartment in a derelict neighborhood. At school she is the foreigner,
the odd one. She describes poignantly how it is when she is one of
the students who is not chosen for a group project and has to be
assigned by the teacher.
"There is eye rolling and chair scraping
As we shuffle forward,
Unwanted and misused,
Like old boots dragged
From a river."
The girls in her class are cliquish, mean, keeping her in a state of
confusion as to what exactly is wrong with her. Sometimes they are
downright cruel as when one cuts chunks out of her hair in a school
assembly. The teachers never seem to notice a thing.
One day a neighbor gives Cassie her father's address. She is to
go there alone without her mother. When she does her world is torn
even more apart.
However, Cassie has swimming, a sport she excells in. Just
being in that other element makes her feel in control, secure.
"At the pool's edge I might be ugly
But when I swim strokes
I am beautiful."
There is also a boy who shares her interest and seems to feel that
she's someone special.
Told in poignant and vivid free form verse, The Weight of Water
is a coming of age story about a girl bravely making the most of a
confusing and often painful new life. It's a must read, especially
for anyone who has experienced the break up of family or peer cruelty.
On a personal note, my tree is so beautiful, especially the side where
I have my beloved cross stitch ornaments and delicate crocheted
snowflakes.
A great big shout out goes out to our teachers and principals,
juggling family time and the huge work load that must be done before
school lets out for holidays. Especially my buddy, Darcie.
Julia Emily Hathaway.
Sent from my iPod
Saturday, December 14, 2013
The Cat Who Liked Potato Soup
The Cat Who Liked Potato Soup
Picture book
Terry Farrish's The Cat Who Liked Potato Soup is a made to be
read aloud gem of a book. It's a lovely little piece on love, on
acceptance of frailty and shortcoming, on growing old together. It
will be loved by children and even more by parents and grandparents.
An old man, a grown up Texas boy, lives with his cat, the only
one left from an army of felines, on a road called Chatterpie due to
the presence of blackbirds on the telephone wire. They're creatures
of habit, both fond of the potato soup the man concocts. This is a
good thing because the cat kills nothing, neither bird nor fish. Her
human companion loves her, "but not so you'd notice."
One day the cat does not go with the man on their daily fishing
trip. When he comes home she's gone...
On a personal note, tonight is Orono Arts Cafe. YOWZA! I am so
psyched to read my poetry in that lively venue.
A great big shout out goes out to our older cats and dogs and their
beloved human companions.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Picture book
Terry Farrish's The Cat Who Liked Potato Soup is a made to be
read aloud gem of a book. It's a lovely little piece on love, on
acceptance of frailty and shortcoming, on growing old together. It
will be loved by children and even more by parents and grandparents.
An old man, a grown up Texas boy, lives with his cat, the only
one left from an army of felines, on a road called Chatterpie due to
the presence of blackbirds on the telephone wire. They're creatures
of habit, both fond of the potato soup the man concocts. This is a
good thing because the cat kills nothing, neither bird nor fish. Her
human companion loves her, "but not so you'd notice."
One day the cat does not go with the man on their daily fishing
trip. When he comes home she's gone...
On a personal note, tonight is Orono Arts Cafe. YOWZA! I am so
psyched to read my poetry in that lively venue.
A great big shout out goes out to our older cats and dogs and their
beloved human companions.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Out Of The Easy
Out Of The Easy
YA fiction
You get a book that starts out with these four sentences:
"My mother's a prostitute. Not the filthy, streetwalking kind. She's
actually quite pretty, fairly well spoken, and has lovely clothes.
But she sleeps with men for money or gifts, and, according to the
dictionary, that makes her a prostitute."
You know what you have on your hands? A must read. Ruta Sepetys' Out
Of The Easy lives up wonderfully to the promise of its first
paragraph. It grabs your mind and heart and just won't let go. YOWZA!
The year is 1950. Josie (17) is trying to find a way to go to
college far from New Orleans. For her the Big Easy is anything but.
Her prostitute mother doesn't have the sense to look after herself,
never mind a daughter but is in her life enough to have her bear the
shame of being a hooker's child. Josie works in a bookstore, lives in
a room above it, cleans house for her mom's madam, Willie, and plans
to escape to a place where folks won't expect her to follow in her
mother's footsteps.
One day a distinguished gentleman shops at the bookstore.
Josie, who has no idea who her father is, imagines he could be. So
she is shaken when he dies under suspicious circumstances that night.
She's even more shaken when her mother is accused of the murder and
when her mom, fleeing town, saddles her with a debt to the mob well
beyond her ability to pay.
The plot is spell binding. The characters are captivating. And
things are far from how they'd seem on the surface. The whore house
madam is the giver of acts of kindness and generosity. The hubbies of
some of the elite familiies, how do I say this, keep her girls in
business. Remember the good old law of supply and demand?
I am so going to read Sepetys' first book, Between Shades of
Gray, and review it if it's anywhere near as good as I expect it to
be. I also plan to read the book, The Last Madam: A Life in the New
Orleans Underworld, that inspired Out of the Easy.
On a personal note, I've got some news that should rock my readers'
worlds. Every year I give myself a special Christmas gift. After I
have the presents wrapped and delivered and the tree decorated I give
myself a few weeks to stay close to home, enjoy family, and read near
the beautiful tree with candy to snack on and dear Joey cat on my
lap. Heavenly!
Of course this means more reviews which is my gift to you!!! Enjoy!
A great big shout out goes out to the students who are in the last
stretch of projects and exams before vaca!
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
YA fiction
You get a book that starts out with these four sentences:
"My mother's a prostitute. Not the filthy, streetwalking kind. She's
actually quite pretty, fairly well spoken, and has lovely clothes.
But she sleeps with men for money or gifts, and, according to the
dictionary, that makes her a prostitute."
You know what you have on your hands? A must read. Ruta Sepetys' Out
Of The Easy lives up wonderfully to the promise of its first
paragraph. It grabs your mind and heart and just won't let go. YOWZA!
The year is 1950. Josie (17) is trying to find a way to go to
college far from New Orleans. For her the Big Easy is anything but.
Her prostitute mother doesn't have the sense to look after herself,
never mind a daughter but is in her life enough to have her bear the
shame of being a hooker's child. Josie works in a bookstore, lives in
a room above it, cleans house for her mom's madam, Willie, and plans
to escape to a place where folks won't expect her to follow in her
mother's footsteps.
One day a distinguished gentleman shops at the bookstore.
Josie, who has no idea who her father is, imagines he could be. So
she is shaken when he dies under suspicious circumstances that night.
She's even more shaken when her mother is accused of the murder and
when her mom, fleeing town, saddles her with a debt to the mob well
beyond her ability to pay.
The plot is spell binding. The characters are captivating. And
things are far from how they'd seem on the surface. The whore house
madam is the giver of acts of kindness and generosity. The hubbies of
some of the elite familiies, how do I say this, keep her girls in
business. Remember the good old law of supply and demand?
I am so going to read Sepetys' first book, Between Shades of
Gray, and review it if it's anywhere near as good as I expect it to
be. I also plan to read the book, The Last Madam: A Life in the New
Orleans Underworld, that inspired Out of the Easy.
On a personal note, I've got some news that should rock my readers'
worlds. Every year I give myself a special Christmas gift. After I
have the presents wrapped and delivered and the tree decorated I give
myself a few weeks to stay close to home, enjoy family, and read near
the beautiful tree with candy to snack on and dear Joey cat on my
lap. Heavenly!
Of course this means more reviews which is my gift to you!!! Enjoy!
A great big shout out goes out to the students who are in the last
stretch of projects and exams before vaca!
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
One Size Does Not Fit All
One Size Does Not Fit All
It seems like everyone these days has an opinion on what's wrong
with America's schools. Usually there is one perspective missing from
the melée: that of the students experiencing education on a day to
day basis. That is why I was thrilled to see Nikhil Goyal's One Size
Does Not Fit All: A Student's Assessment Of School on the Orono
Public Library's new books shelves.
When I started reading I was very impressed with the level of
scholarship and research Goyal presents. The passion comes through
also. He started school eager to learn with a joy in reading and
writing and a view of the library as being "...like a candy store and
an ice cream parlor, rolled into one kid paradise.". By high school he
had become a test acing honor student. His family even moved to a
wealthy community with an ultracompetitive school system. This all
led to an epiphany. "After being assimilated into the Syosset High
School ecosystem, I noticed that I was bored as hell in class and
absolutely nothing I was taught was relevant to real life. I was
trained to be a drone...Testing, more homework, and memorization did
not equate to true learning." Speaking to students from other states
and realizing they had common frustrations led him to write a book to
get their voice heard.
Does he have legitimate grievances. In my opinion, yes! Some of
the things he is highly critical of are:
*an educational system that doesn't adequately prepare students for
the job market of the future;
*the lack of support for critical and collaborative thinking,
collaboration and communication, curiosity, risk-taking, and
overcoming failure;
*the centrality of fill-in-the-bubble standardized tests for all
children including four-year-olds;
*the corporate takeover of education by use of unrealistic
expectations that doom public schools to failure;
*merit pay systems that treat teachers as factory workers rather than
skilled professionals...
Goyal has hope, though, and he ends the book with some really
good ideas on ways to make schools places where true education can
happen and curiosity and creativity are not crushed. A lot of them
are excellent. I'd say that for teachers, admin, school board
members, parents, and anyone else who has skin in the game One Size
Does Not Fit All is a must read. YOWZA!!!
On a personal note, this month I have two venues to read my poetry
in. Last week I read at the Sigma Tau Delta (University) Open Mic
Night. This Friday peeps can catch me at Orono Arts Cafe.
A great big shout out goes out to my new friend, Lily Eskelsen-Garcia
who is a truly inspirational speaker, a staunch advocate for the right
of all children to learn, and, oh yeah, NEA vice president. You go,
Girl!
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
It seems like everyone these days has an opinion on what's wrong
with America's schools. Usually there is one perspective missing from
the melée: that of the students experiencing education on a day to
day basis. That is why I was thrilled to see Nikhil Goyal's One Size
Does Not Fit All: A Student's Assessment Of School on the Orono
Public Library's new books shelves.
When I started reading I was very impressed with the level of
scholarship and research Goyal presents. The passion comes through
also. He started school eager to learn with a joy in reading and
writing and a view of the library as being "...like a candy store and
an ice cream parlor, rolled into one kid paradise.". By high school he
had become a test acing honor student. His family even moved to a
wealthy community with an ultracompetitive school system. This all
led to an epiphany. "After being assimilated into the Syosset High
School ecosystem, I noticed that I was bored as hell in class and
absolutely nothing I was taught was relevant to real life. I was
trained to be a drone...Testing, more homework, and memorization did
not equate to true learning." Speaking to students from other states
and realizing they had common frustrations led him to write a book to
get their voice heard.
Does he have legitimate grievances. In my opinion, yes! Some of
the things he is highly critical of are:
*an educational system that doesn't adequately prepare students for
the job market of the future;
*the lack of support for critical and collaborative thinking,
collaboration and communication, curiosity, risk-taking, and
overcoming failure;
*the centrality of fill-in-the-bubble standardized tests for all
children including four-year-olds;
*the corporate takeover of education by use of unrealistic
expectations that doom public schools to failure;
*merit pay systems that treat teachers as factory workers rather than
skilled professionals...
Goyal has hope, though, and he ends the book with some really
good ideas on ways to make schools places where true education can
happen and curiosity and creativity are not crushed. A lot of them
are excellent. I'd say that for teachers, admin, school board
members, parents, and anyone else who has skin in the game One Size
Does Not Fit All is a must read. YOWZA!!!
On a personal note, this month I have two venues to read my poetry
in. Last week I read at the Sigma Tau Delta (University) Open Mic
Night. This Friday peeps can catch me at Orono Arts Cafe.
A great big shout out goes out to my new friend, Lily Eskelsen-Garcia
who is a truly inspirational speaker, a staunch advocate for the right
of all children to learn, and, oh yeah, NEA vice president. You go,
Girl!
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Eat Move Sleep
Eat Move Sleep
I couldn't help but enjoy the irony of the situation when I
cracked open Tom Rath's Eat Drink Sleep: How Small Choices Lead to
Big Changes shortly upon arrival at the in laws' house on
Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving, more than any other day of the year, is
the occasion gluttony is excused and even celebrated and planned. So
in true jules fashion I had selected a volume that encourages and
celebrates mindfulness. Serendipitously as I read through the day I
found it influencing that I consumed. I did put outside exercise off
til Friday though, since walking in rural Maine minus two items of
blaze orange at the height of deer hunting season carries a fairly
substantial hazard of its own.
Eat Move Sleep is only the second book of all that I've read and
reviewed this year that I plan on getting a personal copy of (Rapt
being the other). It is encouraging and empowering. Instead of the
huge life style changes many books tout that can leave one failing,
giving up, or paralyzed into inaction, it shows how small, manageable
adaptations can build up incrementally. Instead of a one size all
logic, it acknoowledges the individuality of life and personality
styles.
When we think of life style changes for optimal health, we all
think of exercise and diet. Rath boosts sleep to equal importance.
He shows how the elements of this well being trinity interact in daily
life for better or worse. Have you ever stinted on sleep and craved
processed foods the next day? Have you ever stuffed at a meal (say
Thanksgiving) and found the thought of exercise very unapoealing?
That's what he's talking about.
Rath tells us that life is a series of seemingly small but
significant decisions. When we eat or skip breakfast, walk or drive
to a nearby store, defend our right to a restfull sleep or burn the
midnight oil, we are doing things that stack the odds for or against
longevity and health. Even when genetics are not promising we are
more in control than we usually realize. (Rath himself got one of the
worst genetic hands possible.)
Rath encourages us to examine our lives and choose small,
manageable challenges we can incorporate into our lives mindfully
until they become automatic and it's time onto the next. They can
include:
*cutting out sweetened and artificially sweetened beverages in favor
of more wholesome beverages,
*breaking up big blocks of seat time by getting up and moving on a
regular basis,
*shutting off electronics for the hour before bedtime,
*putting the healthiest foods in easiest reach,
*picking a personal motivation for moving more,
*taking the stairs instead of the elevator,
*and so many more.
The bottom line; if you carry genetic risks, weigh a little
more or have less energy that you'd like, or just feel like you can do
better diet or exercise wise Eat Move Sleep is a very wise
investment. Pick your first challenge, find a way of keeping track,
and enlist a friend or two to encourage you. You will find this time
well spent.
I'd encourage you to go one step beyond. Many people face huge
obstacles to making small steps. Folks on fixed incomes or supporting
families on minimum wage, for example, often can't afford wholesome
food. What can the rest of us do? Plenty. Members of Orono
Community Garden, for example grow veggies for low income senior
citizens during the summer and early fall. We get in some exercise
while we help them with good food choices. I'd call that a win win of
the most powerful kind. Is there anything you and yours can do?
On a personal note, one day in October at the University of Maine I
saw a poster for a 30 day challenge. People were encouraged to commit
to doing one thing every day for the month of November and then
getting together to celebrate. YOWZA! I signed up to do something
every day to make someone's day better or happier. I bought a journal
to record my acts and then started a week early. The irony--although
I was focussing on others, the one who gained the most happiness was
me. In December I have two new ones. Taking a page from Rath's book
I'm cutting sugar from coffee and cutting on unhealthy beverages. The
other will be incorporating touch into more of my interactions. So
many people are deprived of the healing power of human touch,
especially our senior citizens.
A great big shout out goes out to all who accept the challenge to take
steps to improve their lives and the friends and family members who
encourage and empower them.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
I couldn't help but enjoy the irony of the situation when I
cracked open Tom Rath's Eat Drink Sleep: How Small Choices Lead to
Big Changes shortly upon arrival at the in laws' house on
Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving, more than any other day of the year, is
the occasion gluttony is excused and even celebrated and planned. So
in true jules fashion I had selected a volume that encourages and
celebrates mindfulness. Serendipitously as I read through the day I
found it influencing that I consumed. I did put outside exercise off
til Friday though, since walking in rural Maine minus two items of
blaze orange at the height of deer hunting season carries a fairly
substantial hazard of its own.
Eat Move Sleep is only the second book of all that I've read and
reviewed this year that I plan on getting a personal copy of (Rapt
being the other). It is encouraging and empowering. Instead of the
huge life style changes many books tout that can leave one failing,
giving up, or paralyzed into inaction, it shows how small, manageable
adaptations can build up incrementally. Instead of a one size all
logic, it acknoowledges the individuality of life and personality
styles.
When we think of life style changes for optimal health, we all
think of exercise and diet. Rath boosts sleep to equal importance.
He shows how the elements of this well being trinity interact in daily
life for better or worse. Have you ever stinted on sleep and craved
processed foods the next day? Have you ever stuffed at a meal (say
Thanksgiving) and found the thought of exercise very unapoealing?
That's what he's talking about.
Rath tells us that life is a series of seemingly small but
significant decisions. When we eat or skip breakfast, walk or drive
to a nearby store, defend our right to a restfull sleep or burn the
midnight oil, we are doing things that stack the odds for or against
longevity and health. Even when genetics are not promising we are
more in control than we usually realize. (Rath himself got one of the
worst genetic hands possible.)
Rath encourages us to examine our lives and choose small,
manageable challenges we can incorporate into our lives mindfully
until they become automatic and it's time onto the next. They can
include:
*cutting out sweetened and artificially sweetened beverages in favor
of more wholesome beverages,
*breaking up big blocks of seat time by getting up and moving on a
regular basis,
*shutting off electronics for the hour before bedtime,
*putting the healthiest foods in easiest reach,
*picking a personal motivation for moving more,
*taking the stairs instead of the elevator,
*and so many more.
The bottom line; if you carry genetic risks, weigh a little
more or have less energy that you'd like, or just feel like you can do
better diet or exercise wise Eat Move Sleep is a very wise
investment. Pick your first challenge, find a way of keeping track,
and enlist a friend or two to encourage you. You will find this time
well spent.
I'd encourage you to go one step beyond. Many people face huge
obstacles to making small steps. Folks on fixed incomes or supporting
families on minimum wage, for example, often can't afford wholesome
food. What can the rest of us do? Plenty. Members of Orono
Community Garden, for example grow veggies for low income senior
citizens during the summer and early fall. We get in some exercise
while we help them with good food choices. I'd call that a win win of
the most powerful kind. Is there anything you and yours can do?
On a personal note, one day in October at the University of Maine I
saw a poster for a 30 day challenge. People were encouraged to commit
to doing one thing every day for the month of November and then
getting together to celebrate. YOWZA! I signed up to do something
every day to make someone's day better or happier. I bought a journal
to record my acts and then started a week early. The irony--although
I was focussing on others, the one who gained the most happiness was
me. In December I have two new ones. Taking a page from Rath's book
I'm cutting sugar from coffee and cutting on unhealthy beverages. The
other will be incorporating touch into more of my interactions. So
many people are deprived of the healing power of human touch,
especially our senior citizens.
A great big shout out goes out to all who accept the challenge to take
steps to improve their lives and the friends and family members who
encourage and empower them.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Change The Way
Change The Way
If my mentor, Betsy Webb, had been with me in Orono Public
Library the day I discovered Kathryn Cramer and Hank Wasiak's Change
The Way You See Everything Through Asset-Based Thinking she would have
instructed me to read and reflect on it. That would not have been a
hard sell. Everything about it from the texture of the book cover to
the generous use of photographs to the upbeat, conversational tone is
enticing.
Basically the book shows the difference between deficit-based
and asset-based thinking. Deficit based thinking prepares us to
protect ourselves from danger. Dating back to the days when homo
sapiens were a lot lower than we are now on the food chain, it can be
adaptive under certain circumstances. Despite the dire threat
drumbeat of the if-it-bleeds-it-leads media, many of us today don't
live in those circumstances. At its most benign this modus operendi
keeps us stuck in a narrowly focussed fight or flight life style,
preventing us from seeing larger possibilities. At worst the effect
of constant stress can be lethal.
Asset-based thinking, in contrast, allows us to look at the
wider picture with its possibilities. We focus on strengths rather
than weakness and on possibilities rather than dead ends. We change
(this is the tough one) problems into opportunities. The wider lens
can allow us to think outside of the box and envision new
possibilities. Since it is based on optimism rather than pessimism,
its far more conducive to optimum physical and psychological well being.
The situation doesn't change. How we look at it does. Take a
recent snap shot from my life. I did not get a job I would have been
otherwise ideally suited for because of a computer skills deficit
acquired while at home parenting. Since classes are too expensive, if
I'd taken a narrow focus I'd be filling out fast food applications.
However, I took a step back and thought of all the strengths I have. I
set up an appoinment to convince a university dean that a volunteer
spot where I work twenty hours a week in exchange for learning those
skills would be a bargain for his school. I'll let you know how that
turns out.
The book is divided into three sections: changing the way you
see yourself, changing the way you see other people, and changing the
way you see situations. Each one carries a lively blend of
instruction written in a down-to-earth conversational style,
narrative, and amazing photographs. If there is something in your
life--personal, professional, or spiritual--you'd like to change, it's
a good place to start.
I do have one cavaet. Books like this carry the danger of
playing into the hands of the personal responsibility crowd. More and
more people these days are truly endangered no matter how they look at
their situations as economic conditions grow worse for most who aren't
in the elite. If I didn't have a husband willing and able to support
a family, if our children had been seriously handicapped instead of
high achieving, if any number of things I would not have the option of
holding out. So let's not confuse perspective changing with a panacea
that will apply to all folks, no matter how dire their situation.
On a personal note, I jotted down a number of quotes that I found
inspiring. One in particular stunned me. "In everyone's life, at
some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an
encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for
those people who rekindle the human spirit." That's by Albert
Schweitzer. Thank God I encountered Betsy when my soul flame was
extinguished or dangerously close to being so. With her friendship
and guidance it now burns brighter than ever. YOWZA!
A great big shout out goes out to all sentient beings (It's not only
two footers) who rekindle the human spirit.
Sent from my iPod
If my mentor, Betsy Webb, had been with me in Orono Public
Library the day I discovered Kathryn Cramer and Hank Wasiak's Change
The Way You See Everything Through Asset-Based Thinking she would have
instructed me to read and reflect on it. That would not have been a
hard sell. Everything about it from the texture of the book cover to
the generous use of photographs to the upbeat, conversational tone is
enticing.
Basically the book shows the difference between deficit-based
and asset-based thinking. Deficit based thinking prepares us to
protect ourselves from danger. Dating back to the days when homo
sapiens were a lot lower than we are now on the food chain, it can be
adaptive under certain circumstances. Despite the dire threat
drumbeat of the if-it-bleeds-it-leads media, many of us today don't
live in those circumstances. At its most benign this modus operendi
keeps us stuck in a narrowly focussed fight or flight life style,
preventing us from seeing larger possibilities. At worst the effect
of constant stress can be lethal.
Asset-based thinking, in contrast, allows us to look at the
wider picture with its possibilities. We focus on strengths rather
than weakness and on possibilities rather than dead ends. We change
(this is the tough one) problems into opportunities. The wider lens
can allow us to think outside of the box and envision new
possibilities. Since it is based on optimism rather than pessimism,
its far more conducive to optimum physical and psychological well being.
The situation doesn't change. How we look at it does. Take a
recent snap shot from my life. I did not get a job I would have been
otherwise ideally suited for because of a computer skills deficit
acquired while at home parenting. Since classes are too expensive, if
I'd taken a narrow focus I'd be filling out fast food applications.
However, I took a step back and thought of all the strengths I have. I
set up an appoinment to convince a university dean that a volunteer
spot where I work twenty hours a week in exchange for learning those
skills would be a bargain for his school. I'll let you know how that
turns out.
The book is divided into three sections: changing the way you
see yourself, changing the way you see other people, and changing the
way you see situations. Each one carries a lively blend of
instruction written in a down-to-earth conversational style,
narrative, and amazing photographs. If there is something in your
life--personal, professional, or spiritual--you'd like to change, it's
a good place to start.
I do have one cavaet. Books like this carry the danger of
playing into the hands of the personal responsibility crowd. More and
more people these days are truly endangered no matter how they look at
their situations as economic conditions grow worse for most who aren't
in the elite. If I didn't have a husband willing and able to support
a family, if our children had been seriously handicapped instead of
high achieving, if any number of things I would not have the option of
holding out. So let's not confuse perspective changing with a panacea
that will apply to all folks, no matter how dire their situation.
On a personal note, I jotted down a number of quotes that I found
inspiring. One in particular stunned me. "In everyone's life, at
some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an
encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for
those people who rekindle the human spirit." That's by Albert
Schweitzer. Thank God I encountered Betsy when my soul flame was
extinguished or dangerously close to being so. With her friendship
and guidance it now burns brighter than ever. YOWZA!
A great big shout out goes out to all sentient beings (It's not only
two footers) who rekindle the human spirit.
Sent from my iPod
Monday, December 9, 2013
The Blessing Cup
The Blessing Cup
Picture Book
Patricia Polacco knows how to make the past come alive for our
youngest children. In The Keeping Quilt she had told of her
grandmother fleeing with her family to America. In this companion
volume, The Blessing Cup, she tells the story of another precious
family heirloom.
The story begins long ago and far away in a village in Russia.
A young bride receives a very special gift from her Aunt--a china tea
set of such beauty everyone in the village admires it. A note says
that anyone who drinks from it receives God's blessings. The marriage
prospers and children arrive. Although never wealthy, the family
members feel rich.
One night the temple is set on fire. The Tsar has decreed that
Jews may no longer live in Russia. They must leave with only the
belongings they can carry or pull in carts. The family decides to go
to America where the father has a cousin. They set out with the
parents pulling a cart loaded with their most precious treasures
including their two very young children. Most nights the father
sleeps on the cold ground while his family sleeps in the cart. Then
one day the father collapses from pneumonia...
The Blessing Cup is a lyrical reminder of what is truly most
important in life, a true blessing to all who read or hear it.
And, yes, Polacco's family still has a cup from the set.
On a personal note, my family has a number of heirlooms that have been
passed down through generations. My Amber is a genius at uncovering
their stories. I am very thankful for her talent and willingness to
use it to make our past come alive.
Do you have treasures handed down in your family? One of the greatest
mitzvahs you can do for future generations is to record their stories.
A great big shout out goes out to all who have the gift of keeping the
past alive.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Picture Book
Patricia Polacco knows how to make the past come alive for our
youngest children. In The Keeping Quilt she had told of her
grandmother fleeing with her family to America. In this companion
volume, The Blessing Cup, she tells the story of another precious
family heirloom.
The story begins long ago and far away in a village in Russia.
A young bride receives a very special gift from her Aunt--a china tea
set of such beauty everyone in the village admires it. A note says
that anyone who drinks from it receives God's blessings. The marriage
prospers and children arrive. Although never wealthy, the family
members feel rich.
One night the temple is set on fire. The Tsar has decreed that
Jews may no longer live in Russia. They must leave with only the
belongings they can carry or pull in carts. The family decides to go
to America where the father has a cousin. They set out with the
parents pulling a cart loaded with their most precious treasures
including their two very young children. Most nights the father
sleeps on the cold ground while his family sleeps in the cart. Then
one day the father collapses from pneumonia...
The Blessing Cup is a lyrical reminder of what is truly most
important in life, a true blessing to all who read or hear it.
And, yes, Polacco's family still has a cup from the set.
On a personal note, my family has a number of heirlooms that have been
passed down through generations. My Amber is a genius at uncovering
their stories. I am very thankful for her talent and willingness to
use it to make our past come alive.
Do you have treasures handed down in your family? One of the greatest
mitzvahs you can do for future generations is to record their stories.
A great big shout out goes out to all who have the gift of keeping the
past alive.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
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