“if you read just 15 minutes a day, in a year you will have read about one million words. think about the impact that has on your child, their ability to understand text and develop concepts about the world around them.”
—
in honor of national library week
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credits: painting by gary-nikolai angleov, bookstock.mi.org
mixed feelings
when walking inside from another round of snow
and being greeted by a 4th of july display
at least i have my sandals on
with my long down coat
and i am ready for anything.
“there are certain odd times and occasions
in this strange mixed affair we call life
when a man takes his whole universe for a vast practical joke.”
-herman melville
another day, another hobby.
in the late 60s
this was a book that i longed to own
i loved to get mail and loved to get free things
what could go wrong?
i used my saved-up coins to send in for the book
and could not wait to begin using it
i read it from cover to cover
marking pages, checking off favorites
began writing notes, stuffing envelopes, and ordering things
using stamps that i found in a junk drawer
before i knew it i had a small collection of
weird government brochures, lists of tips, tables, charts, and recipes
none of which were really of any use to me
but i didn’t care what any of it was
as long as it came in the mail and it was free
my pile grew and grew
until it didn’t
when once again
i realized that i had no income
had used all of my money to buy the book
and had no way
to buy any more of the stamps
that i needed
to send in my requests
to get free things.
what i really needed were unlimited free books of stamps
and it was on to the next ill-fated hobby for me…
—
“sometimes one pays most for the things one gets for nothing.”
-albert einstein
hope springs eternal
and
as the snow returns once more
i hope for eternal spring
or for even just a month of it.
—
“in the spring,
i have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours.”
-mark twain
—
image credit: flower power gnome – magic onions
“One day you finally knew what you had to do,
and began, though the voices around you kept shouting their bad advice —
though the whole house began to tremble
and you felt the old tug at your ankles.
“Mend my life!” each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.
You knew what you had to do, though the wind
pried with its stiff fingers at the very foundations
though their melancholy was terrible.
It was already late enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen branches and stones.
But little by little, as you left your voice behind,
the stars began to burn through the sheets of clouds
and there was a new voice which you slowly recognized as your own,
that kept you company as you strode deeper and deeper into the world,
determined to do the only thing you could do —
determined to save the only life that you could save.”
—
credits: papercut by annie howe papercuts, poetry by Mary Oliver – ‘Journey.’
just happened upon this while grocery shopping
and based up the name and descriptors
i have absolutely no idea what it actually is.
things that i do know about it:
corn plays some sort of role
it is very yellow
corn can dance or do magic.
things i do not know about it:
is it animal, mineral or vegetable?
—
“truth is ever to be found in simplicity,
and not in the multiplicity and confusion of things.”
-isaac newton
Solving Kids’ Cancer’s Junior Ambassadors are a group of 6-16 year olds whose philanthropic efforts help create new and more effective treatments for children with the most challenging childhood cancers. They deserve to be in the spotlight for their commitments and passions to bring change to the childhood cancer community. Throughout the month of April, we are proud to introduce you all to this inspirational group of future leaders.
Meet Jr. Ambassador, Finn Kennedy. (My niece, who never had the chance to meet her brother/my nephew, Hazen, who passed away from pediatric cancer before she was born.)
What do you want to do when you grow up?
” I want to be a lawyer because the world needs good lawyers.”
Why did you decide to become a Jr. Ambassador for Solving Kids’ Cancer?
“Because I feel like everyone should have a chance to be a kid, have fun and change the world and I want to help sick kids to have that.”
What do you want your efforts to do?
” I want this money to go to researchers who try to invent medicines using expensive technology.”
What do you think we can all do for children that are fighting cancer?
” We can encourage them to stay happy. We should work hard and do our best to let people know that there are children who really need help.”
—
—
“the measure of a life, after all, is not its duration, but its donation.”
-corrie ten boom
one of my former students
who i now work with after school
created this travel brochure
complete with her plan for ‘how to get there’
using an innovative method i hadn’t considered
but it makes perfect sense from her perspective.
—
“we learn by taking action and seeing whether it works or not.”
-patrick lencioni
kinders are home again at the castle
after a long day spent challenging dragons.
—
“in the long run, the sharpest weapon of all is a kind and gentle spirit.”
-anne frank
I didn't have my glasses on.... 