Slicing and Worrying

       I'm slicing with the Two Writing Teachers community today. It's always a pleasure to read what everyone writes about their lives.

 

        Best wishes to all of you who are going to NCTE this week! I hope to follow some of the tweets!

         

Trying to laugh a little, too!

THIS, THIS IS WHAT I WROTE IN MY INTRO LAST WEEK: Yes, I'm happy. It's been a long and rocky road to this day, and I will be celebrating when it's over. I want to move on to help our country do better!

I AM NOT CELEBRATING! I am very concerned, and Donald Trump's decisions since last Wednesday continue to confirm my concern. This is my slice of life, worrying about what's already happening, worrying about people who say "give him a break", worrying about my friends and family who are frightened. Feel free to ignore my slice if you feel uncomfortable, but my intent is to make people uncomfortable. Attention should be paid. I'm doing what I can to be aware of decisions made that I believe are wrong for our people and our country.

Early, early in this election process I posted the following: 

"The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country." -Hermann Göring, Nazi military leader (12 Jan 1893-1946)

Later I found this quote that helped me feel firm about my beliefs:

Whitman’s advice on living a vibrant and rewarding life: “Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to everyone that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others… re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul…”

 And I posted this:

   “I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo.

"So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

        You may have other words that comfort. And I do have hope, like E.B. White: 

“Hang onto your hat.

Hang on to your hope.

And wind the clock,

for tomorrow is another day.”

photo credit: Howdy, I'm H. Michael Karshis If you were looking for a sign this is it. via photopin (license)

Monday Reading - Worries and A Celebration

          Visit Jen at Teach MentorTexts and Kellee and Ricki at UnleashingReaders to see what they've been reading, along with everyone else who link up. I'm still in the midst of reading for the Cybils poetry, round one. I reviewed a few this week, and some picture books. My favorite PBs are below.

            For Poetry Friday, I reviewed Somos como los nubes/We Are The Clouds by Jorge Argueta, a book of poetry about children immigrating, often alone, to get to the U.S.  

         Bear is lonely, sees all the other forest animals having fun together, but they avoid him. "He's so big. His teeth are sharp." At last, when chills come, bear decides to throw a winter party. He sends out invitations, and on that day he lights a fire, bakes tasty treats, even brews some spiced cranberry tea. That morning, a few snowflakes fall, and Bear is worried. No one has come so far. But then he sees a few peeking around some trees and invites them in. It turns out that getting to know someone who seems different is a very good thing. The party is a success, and the story will be wonderful to use for young children who are a bit reluctant to make friends with "different" people. The illustrations are color-filled and bigger than life, sort of like the bear, at least to his forest friends.

Never Stop Finding Celebrations!

  Celebrating with Ruth Ayres at Discover Play Build.  and linking with others who share their celebrations, too. I am grateful to Ruth for helping us celebrate together!  

      Many are finding comfort this week in words, poetry and prose, words from long ago and today. I changed my FB pic this week to another beautiful sky pic (can't stop taking them) and this quote: “Hang onto your hat. Hang on to your hope. And wind the clock, for tomorrow is another day.” ~ E.B. White.  It was a hard week NOT filled with big celebrations, at least for me, but I will continue to be grateful for the small ones, and will never give up fighting for mutual respect and kindness among all those who live here on our earth. 

     There is joy in my granddaughters, and joy in what I see every day in nature. 

In the gift shop at the exhibit for Extreme Mammals.

The beauty of sunsets from the museum's view. 

Poetry Friday - Being Other

           I decided to use this as my Poetry Friday "button" today that I created as my new FB picture. I choose to continue "going high"!  It also fits because I'm going to write about clouds today.

       Thanks very much to Jama Rattigan who is our host today at Jama's Alphabet Soup. I know that she is sharing something soothing and tummy warming for us today, much needed this week.

        Because of the divisiveness of this election time, it feels even more important to me that we read widely, read others' views, and embrace what we can with sympathy. We cannot even approach empathy without knowing something about other experiences, even if it is through imagined stories--prose or poetry. Jama shared the book that I want to share again today here. It is a nominee for the Cybil's poetry awards. And it fills us with the feelings of the words of children who are leaving home, often alone, to make their way to the United States.

N-F journey - Someone Left Out

              Thanks to Alyson Beecher's Non-Fiction Picture Book Challenge at Kidlit Frenzy, those who link up share fabulous non-fiction picture books. I am grateful for all that I've learned through reading non-fiction picture books. 





        As Deborah Hopkinson says in a further note in the back matter, she learned about Matthew Henson late in life, just as I did. The wonderful part is that authors like Deborah Hopkinson are researching and writing biographies to tell us about people and events in history that have been previously ignored.       
        Matthew Henson had a tough life but was smart and tough himself as you will see from his story. He was orphaned at thirteen, set out on his own and landed in the Baltimore Harbor. There he was fortunate to be taken on as a cabin boy by a captain who liked him and then educated him. Matthew Henson obviously was smart, learns all he can, but after a few years moves on. Amazingly, he was working at a store when he met Robert Peary. Peary immediately liked Matthew and asked him to join him on his next expedition to Greenland. Their partnership and adventure began!