Happy Holidays
December 16, 2009
December is the month with the least amount of light and by 5 p.m. I am ready for an early dinner and bedtime — there is genius in why bears hibernate in the winter. But for us humans, hibernation is not an option however we do get something very special in December— the holidays and the lights — the delicately draped lights on houses and the lights shinning in the windows from the Hanukah menorahs. I love the lights and it makes me realize how much I love color. Hailstones and Halibut Bones (an ‘oldie but goodie’) by Mary O’Neill is one of my favorite books of poetry that takes me into the world of colors.
Treat yourself this holiday season (and the rest of the year for that matter) and dip into this odyssey of the colors of the rainbow.
Here is one poem from her collection.
The colors live
Between black and white
In a land that we
Know best by sight.
Isn’t everything,
For colors dance
And colors sing,
And colors laugh
And colors cry—
Turn off the light
And colors die,
And they make you feel
Every feeling there is
From the grumpiest grump
To the fizziest fizz.
And you and you and I
Know well
Each has a taste
And each has a smell
And each has a wonderful
Story to tell…
Belated Birthday Greetings to Louisa May Alcott and Andrew Clemens.
December 2, 2009
November 29, 1832 is the birthday of Louisa May Alcott who wrote Little Women (1868) when she was 36 years old. November 30, 1835 is the birthday of Andrew Clemens (aka Mark Twain) who wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) when he was 41 years old and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) when […]
Happy Birthday Kevin Henkes— another author on my Evergreen Valentine list.
November 27, 2009
I have a few things in common with Kevin Henkes… As a child he loved to re-read books and he liked to take them everywhere. Even better, all his books showed signs of love— fingerprints on the pages, his name inscribed on the front and back cover and he liked peanut butter— and he was […]
Happy Thanksgiving!
November 23, 2009
There is a saying in my family that a superior meal must be accompanied by first-rate conversation. In keeping with this tradition, Thanksgiving – no matter the menu –provides an opportunity to talk about thankfulness and appreciation. Wishing you a wonderful day filled with cuisine, conversation and camaraderie. Some conversation jump starters— * Aldous Huxley […]
“Happy Birthday William Steig” November 14, 1907-October 2003
November 13, 2009
I always try and be the first person to wish my sons “Happy Birthday”. Depending on what time zone they are living in, I often need to call them a day ahead so, no surprise that I also want to be the first to wish William Steig a Happy Birthday for November 14. He would […]
