The Good Stuff – World Elephant Day

August 12, 2015 / still a dreamer / 4 Comments

Today is World Elephant Day, and I wanted to share with you two things – a wonderful video of a baby elephant in a protected nature preserve for rescued elephants in Thailand; she finds a long piece of ribbon and plays with it. It’s enchanting – she’s just like any other little kid, (she’s 5 years old), with a new toy …

And the rescue of a humpback whale who was saved by a group of researchers out on their boat. They came across her so entangled by discarded fishing net that she is slowly drowning. One of the men swims out to her to let her know that they’re there to help. Ultimately, when she seems to know they are freeing her, she patiently stays alongside their boat as they cut her free, and then she shows them what freedom really is.

There is much sadness in the world as to how man treats his animal brethren, but it is always so wonderful to watch him rise above. Thanks to the people who take such good care of these elephants and the individuals who freed this magnificent creature and saved her life.

The Little Things to Be Grateful For

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

Top on my list today? Jersey tomatoes!

Slice into one of these ruby red gems and it’s pure heaven. What’s for lunch? A Skellig sweet cheddar from Ireland, Vegenaise and organic sprouted grain toast – yum!

And I don’t care what anyone says – I’ve had tomatoes from other places and they just don’t measure up to real Jersey tomatoes. They don’t call us the Garden State for nothing!

And the best part? In my part of the state there are farmstands and farmers’ markets dotting the back roads and main roads, so you never have to go too far to be absolutely delighted with these sweet, juicy, delicious tomatoes. (Corn, too!) Gratitude for little things comes easy out this way in summer.

Summer Reading

August 4, 2015 / still a dreamer

Summer’s a great time to read – it doesn’t matter if you’re on the front porch or in the A/C, if it’s in the cool morning or squeezing it in for a half-hour before you turn out the light – it just seems that time must be made to read. So what are you reading? And how do you decide what to read?

I find that friends often have great suggestions, especially if they’re involved in children’s books, too. One friend, getting her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults, comes up with great suggestions because she’s reading like a fiend while getting her degree, as does another who does constant research for her own writing in picture books. Of course, I always come across fabulous finds at our huge annual county book sale, but let’s not forget one other source …

Our humble librarians. The local librarian in my little town is a wealth of information, and by now, she also knows me well enough to make some wonderful suggestions as well, especially in KidLit. Awhile back, she had mentioned how much she enjoyed the first middle-grade book of a trilogy by Rita Williams-Garcia, One Crazy Summer. It’s about 3 girls who live in Brooklyn traveling out to Oakland, CA to meet their mother who left them 7 years earlier. I hadn’t realized initially that this is historical fiction, and the story takes place when the Black Panthers were active in CA, as was their mother. It’s a fascinating tale that takes place when I was well aware of all the goings-on at that time, the assassination of President Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr, Bobby Kennedy, the Vietnam war, etc. But what really brought the story to life is Garcia’s three main characters, Delphine, Vonetta and Fern. They are so real; it’s no wonder Ms. Garcia-Williams won so many awards, including a Newbery Honor Award.

So endearing and engrossing are these sisters, that I brought back the first book, and walked right out with the second, p.s. Be Eleven, advice given to Delphine by her mother at the end of each letter she sends her, (Delphine being the oldest.) The author doesn’t shy away from big topics and now the girls, back in Brooklyn, are trying to understand what’s happened to Uncle Darnell who’s returned from Vietnam, not the Uncle D. they knew just 15 months ago. Family plays a big part in these stories and Big Ma, raised in the South, has her own ideas about raising the girls, as does Pa, but then the girls must also deal with him introducing a new lady friend and getting married. It’s real life, and all shared through the eyes of these three wonderfully drawn young girls.

I’ve just put in a request to get the third book in the trilogy, Gone Crazy in Alabama, through inter-library loan, but meanwhile, have jumped into an adult novel, recommended by yet another friend and avid reader, Defending Jacob.

It’s summer – are you reading?

When the Message Has Meaning

July 21, 2015July 21, 2015 / still a dreamer / 2 Comments

I have a love/hate relationship with the marketing world. I am so, so weary of having a zillion products and services pushed at me relentlessly in every media avenue I could possibly be in touch with. It’s annoying and sometimes exhausting, and, I suspect, touches your life as well.

But then … I come across a commercial which is absolutely brilliant, moving, and says something so important in a way that I could never imagine. At first, this short, wordless commercial shows us a touching relationship between man and his best friend, the steadfast devotion dogs have for us. But that’s just a part of the message. What’s ultimately being said is so unexpected and so beautifully said — take a look.

Synchronicity – in A Small and Happy Way

July 19, 2015July 20, 2015 / still a dreamer / 4 Comments

I am a big believer in synchronicity. To some of us that means that there are no coincidences. That we are sometimes/often given little signs that what we are doing is right, what we are thinking is on the mark, that others are thinking of us, and so on. (How about when you are thinking of a friend, you go to pick up the phone and it rings, and your friend is on the line?) Not everyone believes in synchronicity and these individuals attribute such things to luck, to chance. I am not one of these individuals.

Here’s another example. When I lived in Brooklyn, I lived on Union St. As I searched for the right place to move in New Jersey, the perfect apartment opened up – in the town I wanted, on Union St.! When I was planning to move out to the western side of the state, the perfect house turned out to be in Union Township. That’s what I’m talking about!

So how about the small and happy synchronicity? At the upper left, you see carvings of two Indian Runner Ducks*. They were in a local import store, Two Buttons, and I was just entranced by them. They were not outlandishly expensive so I decided to treat myself to these two, chosen from a nice selection of different positions and attitudes. They are carved from the roots of palm trees by Balinese, (I believe), artists, and they’ve been gracing my living room for several years now.

Not long ago, I received some birthday goodies from two people very dear to me, and what do you think was inside? A baby runner duck! It was the wife of the couple who spotted the young duck with the polka-dot rain boots, and they both thought it would be perfect for me. Little did they know …

So the duckling, whose name is Hattie according to her name tag, has now rounded out the little family quite nicely. I am also finding inspiration for a possible children’s book, but that’s another story.

Is this synchronicity? Methinks yes … a small and happy one, that tells me that two people dear to me, even though they live at quite a distance and were unaware of my two ducks, are in tune and knew exactly what would be perfect for me. Pretty cool!

Is there synchronicity in your life? Of course there is! Keep an eye out and you’ll be amazed at what you can find.

* p.s. Indian Runner Ducks are a domestic breed of duck that stand upright on their legs, just as you see these carvings, and walk and run, rather than waddle.