More Homeschooling with a Toddler – Pirates!
It took longer than expected, but we read through Magic Tree House book #4 Pirates Past Noon
While reading the companion book, kiddo sorted sea shells and counted her treasure…
After that we learned about Vikings and ancient maps… even learned how to spell “Map.”
And that’s what homeschooling a two year old looks like.
Illustrator of Note – Aoristos
Gershom Reese Wetzel (Aoristos) has been a friend of mine for about ten years now. His artwork fills my living room and my husband’s man cave. There’s even a portrait of us hiding in a picture frame somewhere.
So when you go to write a sci fi novel or a children’s Kung Fu series (yes, I have both projects in my back pocket), naturally you ask this guy to cook up some illustrations for you.
Check him out, like him on facebook…
Awesome.
We’re a week away from Valentine’s Day, and normally I am just thankful that I’m not Rosaline from Romeo and Juliet.
This year, though, I wanted to show my appreciation for those of you who read this blog and read my books! No contest, no sign ups, no opting in for anything – none.
If you would like me to mail you a chapbook with my short story “When I Met Crazy in the Morning” and Recipes from Hefner Falls (recipes from the Great Depression), just send me an email (I won’t spam you and I won’t share your email address) – melindamcguirewrites @ yahoo dot com with the subject line “chapbook”. Include your mailing address in the email, and I will mail you the chapbook and a bookmark.
Just wanted to say thank you to all of you who have been so supportive. I do…
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Weekly Low Down on Kids Books – Green Eggs and Ham
The problem with toddlers, and kids in general, is the second you pin down what they like and don’t like they immediately turn into liars. Coincidentally, my kid did this with the infamous Dr. Seuss title Green Eggs and Ham.
As you probably well know, Green Eggs and Ham is about a guy discrediting something entirely without ever trying it. He insists through the whole book that he doesn’t like Green Eggs and Ham, he won’t like them here or there or anywhere, he’ll never try them because he knows he’ll never like them. Of course, as the twist of fate will have it, to get Sam-I-Am to leave him alone about the matter, he agrees to try them and discovers that low and behold they are GREAT!
That’s kind of how kiddo has been the last week or so about the book. I picked it up thinking, here’s a classic my kid needs, and read it to her (and some other kids) for the first time during Story Time at Half Price Books Humble. In a retail environment you don’t really have the freedom to take full advantage of all the exclamation points, so I bought it and read it to her at home.
Halfway through our first reading at home she said, “No, no mommy, no green eggs and ham. No, no.” She put her hand over the book, shook her head at me, and instantly replaced it with another title. The title she wanted instead was a Max Lucado picture book from the library called One Hand Two Hands
A few days later, it hit me, but not until after second breakfast. At second breakfast, I started reading Green Eggs and Ham, which she insisted I put down. So, I went to pick out a different title and when I did this she protested!
“No, mommy, I like Green Eggs and Ham.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes, now I like Green Eggs and Ham. Read.”
Like the star of Dr. Seuss’ little book, Kiddo had to warm up to the idea of Green Eggs and Ham. For whatever reason, when first introduced she was certain she would not like the book. Maybe it seemed to long. Maybe it was too repetitive. Maybe too loud. Who knows, maybe Sam-I-Am just annoyed her with all his persistence. But at the end of second breakfast, after trying to re-read it for over a week, my kiddo decided – finally – that maybe she liked Green Eggs and Ham after all.
Oh Heavenly Days
My post today is supposed to be an update of last night’s book club meeting at Half Price Books in Humble. We discussed Geraldine Brooks’ March, Alcott’s Little Women, Bronson Alcott, Fruitlands, and more. Gigi’s Cupcakes in The Woodlands donated a half dozen cupcakes (which are more like really rich mounds of awesomeness than your typical idea of a cupcake) and mid way through the discussion and a bit of double vanilla icing melting in my mouth, all my very southern self could think was “Oh My Heavenly Days.” The I-literally-feel-like-I-am-in-heaven version of that line, not the rolling of the eyes sarcastic version… you fellow southerners know the very huge difference.
The discussion was awesome. I am quite enjoying this little once a month activity. I love how prepared my gentleman patron comes, with several books and research in tow. I love yacking aimlessly on end about our likes and dislikes and anything about the book that has moved us that much. Add in free cupcakes from GiGi’s and I feel as though we have created a true little slice of heaven tucked away in the corner of Half Price Books.
As far as the discussion of March was concerned, one thing that was agreed upon was the difficulty in reconciling the characters Brook created with the characters we all know and love from Little Women. How did such a hot-headed Marmee become such a controlled and beautifully calm version we read in Alcott’s original work? Things that Brooks clearly well researched don’t mesh with the feel we have for the same history growing up in the States. One thing that stuck out in our minds, as a group, is whether Marmee would have actually gone and stayed under the same roof with the character Grace. What do you think? It’s not too late to join the discussion, leave your thoughts in a comment or come to the meeting next month.
We also agreed on a memorable quote that made an appearance quite early in the novel:
“For to know a man’s library is, in some measure, to know his mind. And this mind was noble in its reach, wide in its interests, discerning in its tastes.” – pg. 18-19
Of course a group of bibliophiles would enjoy that one, of course.
I am still reading Eden’s Outcasts, a book about Bronson Alcott and his daughter Louisa May. I believe I expressed this opinion last night, so I shall re-hash it here, and will probably say it again when I provide an official review of the biography… Bronson Alcott was a weird dude.
Louisa May Alcott’s father was a true transcendentalist, and with that come some shocking beliefs to someone raised as I was. To have your sole guide to life be your own conscious is rather difficult when your conscious moves you to establish a commune with other transcendentalists. Fruitlands became a commune of many differing beliefs and activities that never seemed to find a happy balance. You have one member running the place naked with another member refusing to farm, another with children, and others anti-children. The only common belief system to educate and be separate from the world. In Bronson Alcott’s attempt to create a heavenly utopia he created a hot mess, which upon seeing it I would exclaim in sarcasm now: Oh My Heavenly Days.
I am amazed that Louisa May Alcott came out mostly well adjusted. I am not, however, surprised that the story of Little Women in a happy little world to lose yourself. Little Women functions as a biography of the best versions of her family brought to life in fiction, all the strange and unhappy parts discarded probably for the sake of sanity.
That brings me back to Geraldine Brooks’ March. March is a much darker, sinister, true to life version of the tale of Little Women and Mr. and Mrs. March. It is a grown ups history. I think what is most difficult is reconciling the fictional tale of Little Women with the very real feeling war novel of March. There are some details here and there that ring false, but for the most part it is graphically realistic of some pieces of the Civil War. It captures the darker sides of human nature that Little Women does not address, things that coming from an abolitionist’s family Louisa might have been very familiar.
What do you think?
Who just agreed to donate a print for an HPB raffle!? This guy! Updates to be posted as they come.
Wow. These past twelve months have not only flown by but they’ve also been filled to the brim with so many amazing opportunities and people and it’s honestly a little difficult to even try to summarize everything! 2012 was a big year for me, do you ever have those stand-out years in your life where you feel your own part of the world move just a bit? This year was that for me.
If this time last year you had told me that I would have travelled to the places I’ve been to, met the amazing people I’ve had the opportunity to meet or have even half of the experiences I’ve had, I wouldn’t have believed you but through hard word and good luck I’m so happy to say that this year was filled with all of those things.
At the beginning of the year I was offered an amazing opportunity…
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Now I really have to read it!
Best reader comment I’ve heard in a long time –
I had the pleasure of talking to some older men recently about Josephine: Red Dirt & Whiskey and one of the men said
“I got tangled up with a Texas woman like Josephine once. She almost killed me.”
Then, he smiled and shook his head.
The other two men standing in the circle with us talking nodded in agreement and laughed.
And that made me smile.
Metamorphosis
A Short Story
by E.B. Jones
Mason Maxwell wasn’t like most of the other boys that he went to school with. Whenever he was twelve years old his mother bought him a box with a glass front and he decided that he was going to use it to start a butterfly collection. He liked the idea that butterflies weren’t always the way that butterflies seemed to be. For he himself, felt as though he was a caterpillar, simply waiting until he was able to wind himself up in a cocoon and then to emerge and fly away from everyone and everything.
Mason had never been a very popular boy, he was skinny, small and had to wear very large glasses in order to see. He spent most of his time alone in the library reading books and avoiding confrontations at all costs with the mean boys in gym class.
His only real friend at the school was the librarian. She had taken a special liking to Mason because of his love of reading. Many times he would excuse himself from the pep rallies and assemblies, saying that he needed to go to the bathroom, and he would sneak off to the library to read.
Mason wasn’t the only kid in school that didn’t get along with the mean boys in gym class but they weren’t the same as Mason was. They all wanted to be accepted by the popular kids. One of them, Lynn, had once been friends with Mason years ago. But whenever the boys would be mean to him he would run to the bathroom and cry.
There was another boy, Jeremiah, who would be made fun of as well. But instead of running off to the bathroom and crying, he showed up to school one day wearing all black and pretending like he had no emotions. The kids eventually stopped making fun of him but they never accepted him and Jeremiah would spend most of his off time standing behind the dumpster smoking sweet smelling cigarettes.
Mason was made fun of just as much as any of the other kids that were made fun of, but he didn’t mind it so much. He never wanted to follow the status quot, but preferred to focus his energy on things that interested him. With his affinity for insects he categorized all the students in the school into different groups. Most of the kids in school were ants, just following whatever was popular at the time and doing things that way because that was what you were supposed to do. Mason never got angry at them or wanted to cry whenever they made fun of him because he knew that was just how they were. He knew that none of the ants could understand him, being a caterpillar, and he never expected them too. “There’s always tomorrow.” He would tell himself and smile.
One day, one of the boys from gym pushed Mason up against a locker, “Hey nerd,” The boy said, “How come you like butterflies so much? You a fag or something?”
“No,” Mason said calmly, “I just think they’re pretty. I mean, they aren’t at first, whenever they’re still caterpillars. But eventually they grow up and are beautiful, then they fly around in big groups with their own and are never alone anymore. Not like ants, ants just stay on the ground and do whatever they’re told to do, never thinking for themselves.”
“Whatever faggot.” The boy said, pushing him down on the ground. “I bet you like other boys, that’s why you like butterflies.”
“I don’t see the correlation,” Mason said smiling, “Don’t worry, one day you might see.”
“Shut up faggot,” The kid said. Then he swung and knocked Mason’s glasses off. “That’s what you get for being a fag.”
That evening Mason’s mother picked him up and asked him what had happened. He explained and she just sighed. She didn’t understand him either, “Why don’t you try to play sports of something and make some friends?”
“It’s ok mom. I don’t want to be friends with people like that. They’re mean and one day things will change and I’m going to have a bunch of friends. People that aren’t just mean to each other because they are insecure in their own shortcomings,” he told her.
“Where do you get this stuff?” She asked. She didn’t understand her son, but she didn’t really care, she was proud that her son was more mature than even she was.
“I don’t know, I think it’s because I read a lot of books,” he told her.
A week later Mason decided that he wanted to explain to the other kids in school why he loved butterflies so much so he asked his science teacher if he could do a presentation on then for class. His teacher agreed and he set to work laying out all the details and making sure that he had everything in order for his presentation.
The presentation went well despite the spit wads and name calling. After he finished his teacher stood up and addressed the class.
“That was very informative Mason. Now, can anyone tell me what the process that a caterpillar goes through to become a butterfly?”
Mason raised his hand but the teacher just looked at him and smiled. “Obviously you know Mason, does anyone else know?”
A girl at the back of the class raised her hand slowly, as if she thought she might know the answer.
“Yes, Sandy?” The teacher asked, “Do you know?”
Sandy hesitated for a moment and bit her lip, “Is it, metamorphosis?”
“Very good Sandy.” The teacher said.
Sandy wasn’t the most popular girl in school, but she was a cheerleader and her boyfriend was on the football team. Of all the members of the cheer squad she was the only one that actually seemed to care about any of her school work. Mason turned around and looked at her and smiled.
She looked at him and started to smile, then someone coughed out the word “nerd.” Then her smile went away and she rolled her eyes at Mason.
Mason didn’t mind Sandy rolling her eyes at him. He just turned back around and kept smiling.
Three weeks later Sandy missed several days of school and rumors started to circle around. Someone had said that her mother had been murdered by her father and that she had been kidnapped and was in Mexico. The only thing that anyone knew for sure was that the news was saying that her mother had been murdered and her father was on the lam.
Eventually Sandy did show up to school. Most of the time she kept silent and whenever someone tired to talk to her she told them to go away. Many of her friends ended up taking it very personally because none of them understood what she was going through.
The day before her mothers funeral, Sandy was standing at her locker whenever Mason walked past and noticed that she was crying so he decided to walk up to her.
“Sandy.” Mason said to her.
“Go away, I just want to be alone.” She told him.
“I’m sorry about your mother.” Mason said.
“Just go away! All right?” She yelled at him.
Mason continued on towards the library and went inside and sat down at his usual seat. The librarian came and sat down next to him.
“You like that girl Sandy huh?” She asked him.
“I like everyone. I just think she’s sad and I want to be nice to her because her mom died.” He told her.
“Well, I think you are being a very kind and proper gentleman.” The librarian told him.
“I don’t want her to be sad.” He said “I know why she’s sad, but everyone thinks she’s just being mean to them. They tried reaching out but I don’t think any of them really understand.”
“Well, she is going through a lot right now, and you have to understand that there are a lot of things going on in her mind. Just try and let her know that you’ll be there if she needs to talk to someone, but don’t be pushy about it.” The librarian said, “It’s kind of like whenever you get a little older, you’ll learn that you need to be available, but also respectful of boundaries. Lord knows I’ve been waiting for a boy that understands that.”
“You aren’t married?” Mason asked.
“No,” She laughed, “I was a caterpillar until about two years ago.”
“How old are you?”
“Here’s one more lesson. Never ask a girl her age.” She told him, “But between you and me, I’m 27.”
“Wow,” Mason said, “You were a caterpillar for a long time.”
The librarian laughed and then said, “Yeah, I was.”
“You made a pretty butterfly though.” He smiled.
“Thanks kid.” The librarian said.
Sandy opened the door with her head down and stood in the entryway for a bit, then walked to one of the aisles of books.
“Go get her kid.” The librarian said.
“Right, available, but respectful.” Mason said confidently.
“You’re gonna be something someday.” She smiled.
Mason walked slowly to where Sandy and gone. “I know you don’t want to talk to anyone right now, but if you ever do want to talk, I just wanted to let you know I’ll listen to you.”
Sandy looked up at him and had tears in her eyes. They stared at each other for a moment and then Mason smiled at her, turned around and walked away.
The next day Mason asked his mother if he could go to Sandy’s mother’s funeral and his mother agreed that it would be a nice thing to do.
Sandy arrived with her grandparents and Mason with his mother. “I don’t want to get too close, she’s going through a lot.” Mason told his mother.
After the funeral service ended Mason looked up in the sky and noticed a dark cloud moving swiftly towards the site. Mason’s mother put her hand on his shoulder, “We should get going.” She said.
“Not yet,” He told her.
The dark cloud got closer and closer until everyone that was left at the grave site could see that it was a swarm of butterflies. As the small group marveled at the site, Sandy looked down and noticed that there was one single butterfly resting on her mother’s coffin. She watched it as it slowly moved its wings and then took off and joined the other butterflies and flew north. She watched them until they disappeared into the sky. Whenever she looked back she noticed that Mason was watching the butterflies as well.
“I want to go talk to that boy.” She told her grandmother.
“That’s fine dear.” Her grandmother said.
Sandy walked towards Mason and tapped him on the shoulder. “What kind of butterflies are those?”
“Those are called Red Admiral butterflies. They migrate through here during the spring and fall.” He told her, “This is the first time I’ve seen that many of them though.”
“Do you think they took my mother to a better place?” She asked.
“Maybe,” Mason said, “Maybe in this life we’re all just caterpillars right now. Then one day, we go into a coffin for a little while, and then come out as something even more beautiful.”
Sandy’s throat closed up and tears started forming in her eyes. She tried to open her mouth to make words but nothing could come out so she just leaned in and kissed Mason. It was the first time a girl other than his mother had kissed him. They both stood for a moment looking at each other.
Then, Sandy turned around and walked away, and even though no one ever saw it, for the first time since her mother had died, Sandy smiled.
February 2013 at Half Price Books Humble
See you there!
Also, we will be journaling together February 14th from 7pm-9pm.
Anakalian Whims 