Very Crowded Sukkah

Picture book

      Katherine, who is Jewish, is in my program at UMaine.  She's also a GA for the UMaine diversity office.  Right before Christmas break she wrote a really moving piece on how Christmas is disproportionately highlighted.  We give lip service to Hannukah.  But most people don't learn about the holy days that mean more to Jewish people.

     So my eyes really lit up when, while shelf reading in the Orono Public Library's children's wing I discovered Leslie Kimmelman's Very Crowded Sukkah.  A family is preparing to celebrate Sukkot which is a week long harvest festival.  Sort of a non commercialized Thanksgiving.  They've just finished building and decorating their sukkah, a three sided shed with a roof of branches in which they will eat meals, when a big storm starts.  The sukkah is covered by a tarp.  But Ava, the daughter, feels bad that it's alone in the rain...

     Or is it?

     This deceptively simple picture book captures the basics.  A family could do research to learn about Sukkot.  And what child wouldn't enjoy creating and adorning a Sukkah?  Wilson Center has done so in its parking lot.

On a purrrsonal note, I discovered my pet holiday peeve during the most recent UMaine blood drive.  The room we hold canteen in had acquired a big ass TV.  Each day of the drive we were subjected to six hours of Christmas romance movies.  Luckily I had enough responsibilities to ignore them.  I'm not saying we should scrap them.  But could we please have movies with the traditions of other religions as background?  Like how about Ramadan?  If we ever were an entirely Christian nation we certainly aren't one now.  (Jules)

I'm having lots of fun with my new catnip mouse.  (Tobago)

A great big shout out goes out to Katherine who gave me lots of computer help with turning in my internship assignments and who gave me enthusiastic consent and support when I got the idea to do a lunch and learn on ageism.

Tobago and Jules Hathaway 

     

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