I was lucky, my parents read to me. It was mostly my mother, but my father did too, occasionally.
I grew up in a house full of books, and trips to the library were a regular part of my childhood. The Scholastic book order was another cherished source of books, and my mom was generous with my orders.
My love of books hasn’t diminished. My home library is bursting, and my classroom library is full of terrific titles. I still get excited about the Scholastic book order, only now I’m the teacher.
Here are a few titles from my childhood that stand out, in no particular order.
Babar the King by Jean de Brunhoff
A dapper elephant King and his Royal court captivated me as a little girl.
Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson
I so wished I had a magical crayon like Harold!
If I Ran the Circus by Dr. Seuss
I really wanted to visit the Circus McGurkus. This was the first Dr. Seuss book I knew.
Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina
Maybe this was the start of my aversion to monkeys?
Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McClosky
This is such a sweet and gentle tale with fabulous illustrations.
There are so many more, but these stand out in my mind right now. What are some of your favorites?
I have one week left of summer vacation before I head back to school for meetings and planning and classroom setup. One week left to get to the doctor and the dentist. One week left to attend to all the things I was going to do over the summer, but didn’t. One short week.
Maybe instead of focusing on what didn’t get done I should instead take a look at what I have accomplished.
Vacation
First of all, I managed to have a wonderful vacation that really felt like two vacations, since I was in two separate locations. I spent a good amount of time with my family and I got to see several friends. I walked the beach, I ate s’mores, and I swam in several different pools. I laughed until my cheeks hurt and I explored the area where the Pilgrims landed in the new world. I played mini-golf and I went to the movies and I drank wine and ate salsa with jicima and blueberries. I listened to live music and ate from a food truck and buried my toes in the sand. I saw where the Kennedy’s played football on the lawn and I ate peanut butter cup pancakes and I watched fireworks from the beach. I showed my son my university and goofed off with him in a way that just isn’t possible at home. Maybe that was enough. Maybe I didn’t have to do anything else, but I did.
Chores
I took care of my car, which was an unpleasant task, but what can I do? I need a car. I waited out the air conditioner’s coy way of fooling the repair guys, and restored some cool to our indoor space. I cleared out some items that we no longer need or love and donated them to charity. I also started cooking a little bit more, and began relying on going out a little bit less. Of course that means more trips to the grocery store, more meal prep, and more cleaning up. Oh, and laundry. I must have washed a zillion loads of laundry (that’s a lie… I’m actually boycotting laundry because I’m simply not in the mood for it).
Social Butterfly
If you know me in person and you choked on this heading I apologize. Let me clarify: I was a social butterfly to my way of thinking. I went to a baseball game with my son, I went to a painting party with a couple of friends, and I had a few lunches with friends. It all counts!
Reading
I read quite a bit this summer. Some of the books I loved, others I was less enthusiastic about, but I felt good about reading. In reverse order, I read:
The Outsiders by SE Hinton
The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty
The Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnson
The Middle Place by Kelly Corrigan
A Dog’s Purpose by W Bruce Cameron
The Noticer by Andy Andrews
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
We Were Liars by E Lockhart
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
The bolded titles were the ones that really stood out. They were the ones I most hated to put down and the ones that gave me the most to puzzle over. That’s not to say that I didn’t enjoy the others. I did. In fact I enjoyed them all.
Work
Oh yes, I did four weeks of teaching youth, I can’t forget about that. It was an enjoyable four weeks, and I would definitely do it again, should the opportunity arise. Spending my mornings with kids who enjoy creating stories and narratives is a pleasure. Helping them to refine their ideas and turn them into words on a page is remarkable. Being involved in that story telling process is quite an honor.
Rest
I admit it, I slept. I slept in, I took naps, and I went to bed when I felt tired. My body thanks me, but I’m a little bit worried about going back to work. No more nap time!
I’m okay with going back to work. A new school year is always exciting for me. I love meeting my new students and helping them to form a cohesive community of learners. We become a family of sorts, and that’s a beautiful thing. I also love seeing my former students, a few months older, a summer wiser, as they enter the fifth grade. The change in some of them is truly remarkable, and it’s so rewarding to watch those kids as they mature.
Yes, I’m about ready to go back, but before I do I’m going to enjoy one last week of r & r, there’s no need to rush it.
I wonder what my dog dreams about. She follows me into my studio (a fancy term for the bedroom I have commandeered) and lays at my feet while I work (or play) on the computer. Soon, she falls asleep.
She is lovely company, quiet and undemanding when it’s just the two of us here in this peaceful space. I go into my head here, and she does the same. Her journey, however, is through her dreams.
I’m certain she dreams. She lets out little chuffing noises from time to time, and occasionally a paw will mime running. It’s as though she’s on a mission, perhaps chasing down a little rabbit that has dared to enter her yard.
I wonder what the world is like from her perspective. I recently read A Dog’s Purpose, and a while back I read The Art of Racing In the Rain, both wonderful books written from a dog’s point of view. I wonder how close the authors came to capturing the experiences of these dogs (and yes, I know these are works of fiction, but you know what I mean).
My dog is a sweet girl, and her presence in the room, while she dreams her doggy dreams, never fails to charm and calm me. I hope all of her dreams are as wonderful as she is.
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