There Goes My Life...

Consumed.

This book has been sitting on my shelf for a very long time. It belongs to my sister-in-law.  She loaned it to me about a year ago I think.  Several, several months at least. It is the sequel to my all time favorite book, The Pillars of the Earth.  So why you ask has it taken me so long to start it?  Because it is over 1000 pages and I knew that when I started it I would be consumed by it.

In December I ordered the miniseries from Netflix.  Chris had never read the book, but he really got into the story.  Just like with the book, I was sad to see the mini-series end.  That’s the bad part about a really good story, you just don’t want it to end.  With the story fresh in my mind, it seemed like the perfect time to start the sequel.

Just as I predicted I am consumed by it.  It’s all I can think about during the day.  When I am cleaning or working, I want to be reading.  I don’t let myself pick it up because I know I would be lost then.  So I wait until night, and then I read.  One night I stayed up until 1:00 a.m.  Last night I was so sleepy.  I kept losing my place and would read the same paragraph two or three times.  Finally, I gave up and went to bed.

Today the kids went back to school.  The house has been quiet.  I want to read, but I haven’t even let myself get close to it.  I’ve locked myself in the basement and worked.  Tonight after the kids go to bed though…it is all mine!

Classic of the Month – December.

Wow has it already been almost a year since I started my quest to read one classic per month?  I have fallen a little bit behind in the past couple of months, but I am still working on it.  In my line of work, this is the busiest season of all, so I haven’t had the time to read as much as I would like.  I put down my November classic, but I hope to finish it before the end of the year. 

Last night at bedtime I was wanting something to read to wind down a bit from the day.  I knew I needed to choose a classic for December, and I was hoping for something holiday related other than A Christmas Carol.  I started scrolling through the free classic on the Kindle website and saw an old favorite. I quickly downloaded it and finished reading it in a matter of minutes.

I loved it as much as I did the first time.  However, this time I had much more perspective than I did when I read it the first time.  I don’t remember what grade I was in when I first read The Gift of the Magi.  I do remember that it was in my reading book, so it may have been an even shorter version.  Unlike many of the other stories I read in class over the years, this story has always stayed with me.

If you are not familiar with the story, it is the story of a young couple who can barely make ends meet. It is Christmas Eve and they both desire to give the other a gift that is as worthy as the love they both have for each other.  Della has saved pennies from the weekly food allowance.  Literally pennies.  She has less than $2 to spend on a gift for her husband.

There was clearly nothing to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl. So Della did it.  Which instigates the moral reflection that life is made up of sobs, sniffles, and smiles, with sniffles predominating.

This story touched me more this time I think because as a wife, a stay-at-home wife for the most part for the past several years, I could identify with Della.  Not receiving a paycheck each week, I have been in the position where I have put back money from budgeting so that I could buy Chris a gift.  Granted our money is our money, but I didn’t want to have to ask for extra that week because he would know exactly what I was doing. Granted, I have never been in the position where I only had $1.87 to purchase him a Christmas gift, but I could still identify.

And as her husband goes out each day to make a living for their family, she wishes she could give him more and feels bad for wishing for more.  I know that feeling, also.

The door opened and Jim stepped in and closed it.  He looked thin and very serious.  Poor fellow, he was only twenty-two and to be burdened with a family!  He needed a new overcoat and he was without gloves.

You learn that …there were two possessions of the James Dillingham Youngs in which they both took a mighty pride.  One was Jim’s gold watch that had been his father’s and grandfather’s.  The other was Della’s hair.

Without giving the entire story away, you find that they both sacrifice what they value dearly to give to the other that Christmas.  Some might say foolishly.  I say unselfishly. 

Reading this again reminded me of a conversation I had with a friend lat week.  She is single, and we were talking about our generations.  This has been a study at our church the past few weeks.  She mentioned how she liked the way that Chris and I support one another in each others interests.  I told her that our marriage isn’t perfect, but I think it is as close to perfect as you get.  I also shared with her, with the disclaimer that I haven’t had marital problems so I might be wrong, that I think that the failure of so many marriage today is because of selfishness.  I think today most people are more concerned with their own wants and wishes than anything else.  That is one of the reasons I think this is a timeless tale. 

We can all learn from it. 

Love to the point of sacrifice.

Give to the point of sacrifice.

Classic of the month – October.

Of course October’s classic of the month has to be spooky.  That is why I chose a story I have always loved, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving.

This has been a favorite of mine since I was a child.  I can remember the read-along book I ordered from Scholastic when I was in elementary school.  I am really dating myself, but it came with a 45 record that I played on my little record player in my bedroom.  I can remember the illustrations of  a tall, lanky, awkward Ichabod Crane riding for his life on a broken down old horse.  By the end of the book, I was scared out of my mind.  I found it really difficult to listen to it at night.

I remember back when Tim Burton came out with his movie version of the story starring Johnny Depp.  I had to see it.  So it seemed only fitting for during this month of all things spooky, it would be my choice.

As much as I love the story, I don’t think I had ever actually sat down and read the original. I didn’t realize it was as short as it was.  It could easily be read in one sitting, and would be delightful for scaring the kids before bedtime.

So, in the likely event you aren’t familiar with the story, here are a few passages chosen from the book.

It is said by some to be the ghost of a Hessian trooper whose head had been carried away by a cannon-ball, in some nameless battle during the Revolutionary War, and who is ever and anon seen by the country folk hurrying along in the gloom of night, as if one the wings of the wind.

…certain of the most authentic historians of those parts, who have been careful in collecting and collating the floating facts concerning this spectre, allege that the body of the trooper having been buried in the churchyard, the ghost rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head, and that the rushing speed with which he sometimes passes along the Hollow, like a midnight blast, is owing to his being belated, and in a hurry to get back to the churchyard before daybreak.

…the spectre is known at all the country firesides by the name of the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow.

So treat yourself (and your kiddos) to a frightfully good tale this month.

Yes, we are skipping a head a few months.  For those keeping count, the last classic of the month I posted was July.  That is because I am still reading the August classic.  It is Swiss Family Robinson, and it is going a little slower because I am reading it aloud to the kiddos.  September’s classic was to be The Adventures of Huck Finn, and I am starting on it next.

Classic of the month – July.

Once again I am behind in posting my review of my classic of the month. July’s classic was The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain.  I felt like I knew a good part of the story.  I am sure I heard/read excerpts from the book during my youth, and I vaguely remember watching a made for TV move or after-school special in which I remember the whitewashed fence scene.

Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and long-handled brush.  He surveyed the fence, and all gladness left him and a deep melancholy settled down upon his spirit.

Of course we would know that somehow Tom would be able to turn the situation around to his advantage. In the end, he had a nice, good, idle time all the while – plenty of company -  and the fence had three coats of whitewash on it! If he hadn’t run out of whitewash he would have bankrupted every boy in the village.

He had discovered the law of human action, without knowing it – namely, that in order to make a man or boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain. If he had been a great and wise philosopher, like the writer of this book, he would now have comprehended that Work consists of whatever a body is OBLIGED to do, and that Play consists of whatever a body is not obliged to do.

Tom found Monday mornings the same as many of us do.  Monday morning found Tom Sawyer miserable.  Monday morning always found him so – because it began another week’s slow suffering in school.

He longs to be like his friend Huckleberry Finn.  I have added Huck’s adventures to my reading list.

Huckleberry came and went, at his own free will.  He slept on doorstops in fine weather and in empty hogsheads in wet; he did not have to go to school or to church, or call any being master or obey anybody; he could go fishing or swimming when and where he chose, and stay as long as it suited him; nobody forbade him to fight; he could sit up as late as he pleased; he was always the first boy that went barefoot in the spring and the last to resume leather in the fall; he never had to wash, nor put on clean clothes; he could swear wonderfully.  In a word, everything that goes to make life precious that boy had.  So thought ever harassed, hampers, respectable boy in St. Petersburg.

The one thing Huck did not like was haunted houses and ghosts.

Blame it, I don’t like ha’nted houses, Tom. Why they’re a dern sight worse’n dead people. Dead people might talk, maybe, but they don’t come sliding around in a shroud, when you ain’t noticing, and peep over your shoulder all of a sudden and grit their teeth, the way a ghost does.  I couldn’t stand such a thing as that, Tom – nobody could.

Tom and Huck’s adventures are full of fun and life lessons.  I as an adult enjoyed it, and I understand why it was one of my husband’s favorite books as a boy.  While many girls would enjoy it, in that The Secret Garden is more of a girl book, this is a adventuresome boy’s book.  When Stewart is old enough to read at this level, I will suggest it to him.  I’m really looking forward to reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Classic of the month – June.

Once again I am a little behind in sharing my thoughts on my classic of the month.  Better late than never as they say.  June’s classic was Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson.  I enjoyed Treasure Island so much, that I decided to read another of Stevenson’s works.  I loved absolutely loved Treasure Island, so it would have been difficult for Kidnapped to have been better to me.  While I wouldn’t rate it above Treasure Island, I still very much enjoyed it.

The story is set in Scotland in 1751. After the death of his father, David Balfour sets out to meet his uncle and claim his inheritance.  David does not receive the welcome he would have hoped from his uncle.

…in those days of my youth, white men were still sold into slavery on the plantations, and that was the destiny to which my wicked uncle had condemned me.

David’s adventure is a wonderful coming of age story and a story of true friendship.

For me the first half of the book was much like Treasure Island in that I was drawn in and couldn’t stop reading.  I just couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen next.  For me the second half of the book was a little slow.  I think that was because I had gotten so caught up in the action. 

A few of my favorite quotes:

No class of man is altogether bad, but each has it’s own faults and virtues.

There are two things that men should never weary of, goodness and humilityl we get none too much of them in this rought world among cold, proud people.

To be feared of a thing and yet to do it, is what makes the prettiest kind of man.

If you missed this one as a youth, I recommend it.  I also recommend it for young readers. 

If you are following along with me on my quest to read a classic each month this year, July’s classic is The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.  I am almost half way done with it, and will try to post my review before the end of July.

Classic of the Month – May.

I am a little behind in posting May’s classic.  I got a late start on it, and I didn’t actually finish it until June.  The Secret Garden is another one of those books, that I felt like I should have read earlier in my life.  It’s a favorite of so many fellow readers, that I am surprised I had never picked it up.

It is the story of a young girl who after the death of her parents goes to live with her uncle, Archibald Craven,  whom she has never met.

He lives in a great, big desolate old house in the country and no one goes near him.  He’s so cross he won’t let them, and they wouldn’t come if he would let them. He’s a hunchback and he’s horrid.

As she explores the grounds of her new home she discovers many mysteries.  She is most intrigued by a garden that her uncle had locked up ten years before after the sudden death of his wife.

She could not help thinking about the garden in which no one had been into for ten years. She wondered what it would look like and whether there were any flowers still alive in it.

When by chance Mary comes across the key and the hidden door to the garden her life starts to change.  She eventually shares the garden with two fellow young conspirators and together they find magic in the garden that would change their lives forever.

Everything is made out of Magic, leaves and trees, flowers and birds, badgers and foxes and squirrels and people.  So it must be all around us.  In this garden – in all the places.

This is a delightful book with life lessons for all.  I would especially recommend it to young girls.  I know my Elizabeth loved it, and I think Molly would, also.  It would be a great book to read aloud to your children. 

I will end my review with one of my favorite quotes:

Of course there must be lots of Magic in the world, he said wisely one day, but people don’t know what it is like or how to make it. Perhaps the beginning is just to say nice things are going to happen until you make them happen.  I am going to try and experiment.

Classic of the month – April.

I must confess that I finished April’s classic a couple weeks ago.  I haven’t posted my thoughts before now because I didn’t know what I could say about this book that hasn’t already been said.  After reading it I questioned why I had never read it before.  I understand now why I have friends who are the moms of little girls named Harper and Scout.  This is truly one of the best books ever written. 

Seeing the world through the eyes of 6-year-old Scout.  It reminded me of my own childhood.  The spooky house and the stories that kids would believe about all things spooky.  I was drawn in from the very first page.

This was the world that my grandparents came of age.  The world that my parents grew up in.  But it is a timeless story.  In my opinion the best book John Grisham has ever written was his first book, A Time to Kill.  While I have enjoyed his other writings, I think all the rest pale in comparison.  I can imagine A Time to Kill taking place in the same town 50 or 60 years later as To Kill a Mockingbird . 

Even today in the south (and I suspect everywhere)  there are characters like those in in Lee’s book.

Those who don’t put the needs of their children before their own.

And it's certainly bad, but when a man spends his relief checks on green whiskey his children have a way of crying from hunger pains. I don't know of any landowner around here who begrudges those children any game their father can hit. Of course he shouldn't, but he'll never change his ways. Are you going to take out your disapproval on his children?

The sweet, kind, wise neighbor lady.  I loved Miss Maudie.

There are just some kind of men who - who're so busy worrying about the next world they've never learned to live in this one, and you can look down the street and see the results.

Atticus.  Such an example of a father.  Fair. Kind. Understanding. Patient.

When a child asks you something, answer him, for goodness' sake. But don't make a production of it. Children are children, but they can spot an evasion quicker than adults, and evasion simply muddles 'em.

You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view - until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.

Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.

There are so many more quotes of parenting wisdom from Atticus I could add.

Of course the character I most loved was the one telling the story.  Scout.  I think so many of us can see the world through her eyes just as we saw it when we were her age.  Sure times are different, but some things stay the same.

If you haven’t read it before you must.  If you’ve read it before, it is certainly worth re-visiting.

Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.

Little Women the play.

If you are a frequent reader of my blog you probably know that this year I have set a goal of reading one classic each month.  You may remember that Little Women was January’s classic of the month.  You may also know that earlier this year Elizabeth and I both auditioned for our community theater’s production of Little Women.  We neither got a part, but we were both lucky to get to assist with some of the performances. 

Last Saturday night Elizabeth and I helped with refreshments and Elizabeth gave out programs (while dressed in costume I might add).  Last night the Barnes girls left the Barnes boys at home and had a girls night at the theater.   This made the fourth time I had seen the production, but the first time I had sat through it in it’s entirety.  I was as drawn in as I was the first time I watched it. 

This was the first Carriage House Players performance for most of the performers.  For some of them it was their first time to be on stage at all.  They all did a wonderful job.  The characters were so true to the story. It was so exciting to see the characters from such a beautiful story come to life. 

The directors/producers are incredible.  They were the same team I worked with in Sleeping Beauty.  Mickey and Brenda’s have such vision.  They now just how to pull out of the actors exactly what is needed to make the characters just right. Mickey’s sets are always so gorgeous.  I just love working with them.

Local friends, tonight is the last performance.  7:00 pm at the Lincoln County Museum.  I really encourage you to go!

Our creative writer.

I never knew Elizabeth was  such a creative storyteller until she brought home her creative writing journal:

 

The Glue Stick

Once there was a glue stick that wouldn’t stay still.  I tried to use him, but I ended up being all sticky.  He had a friend marker who would not stay still.  He drew a mustache on my face.  They did all of the mischief you could think of.  That is the end.

 

National Grouch Day

My sister makes me grouchy! I get grouchy when I get sick!  My brother makes me grouchy!  I get grouchy when I lose my shoes! My DS not working makes me grouchy!  Mrs. Bolton makes me grouchy when she’s grouchy!  I make myself grouchy!  My mom grounds me when I’m grouchy!  Too  much food makes me grouchy!  My pencil makes me grouchy!

 

Little Miss Muffet

As you know there has been a problem with a giant man-eating tarantula in downtown Oxville.  Yesterday four victims met their doom.  The day before there were ten accidents.  But today brave Miss Muffet got up and chased the spider away.

 

The Basketball

Once I had a basketball that would not bounce.  It was weird.  He was very sad.  All his friends could bounce.  He turned into a golf ball.  Now he is happy.

Classic of the month – March.

Yo-ho-ho! March’s classic is Treasure Island.  I finished last month’s classic so early in the month, I started March’s before the end of February.  Part of the reason was that I was expecting it to take me longer to read.  Well, on the second day of the month I am done.  If only I had known how much I would enjoy it, I would have never waited so long to read it!  What an adventure!

I am reading my monthly classics on my Kindle.  The main reason being that the classics are free for Kindle.  However, one feature that I have absolutely loved is the built in dictionary on the Kindle.  I used it a lot while reading Treasure Island.  I wasn’t familiar with most of the sailing terms, but with the Kindle you just move the cursor to the beginning of a word and the definition pops up.  Loved that on those sailing words that otherwise I would have just glossed over.

Just like my last book, this story is told from the perspective of a boy.   From the first page I was drawn with the arrival of Billy Bones to the inn Jim’s family owned.

I remember him as if it were yesterday, as he came plodding to the inn door, his sea-chest following behind him in a hand-barrow – a tall, strong, heavy, nut-brown man, his tarry pigtail falling over the shoulder of his soiled blue coat, his hands ragged and scarred, with black, broken nails, and the sabre cut across one cheek, a dirty, livid white.

Robert Louis Stevenson paints such vivid scenes.  He takes you right there beside young Jim.

Though I had lived by the shore all my life, I seemed never to have been near the sea till then.  The smell of tar and salt was something new.  I saw the most wonderful figureheads, that had all been far over the ocean.  I saw, besides, many old sailors, with rings in their ears, and whiskers curled in ringlets, and tarry pigtails, and their swaggering, clumsy sea-walk; and if I had seen as many kings or archbishops I could not have been more delighted.

Jim’s adventure has more ups and downs than the waves of the sea.

And I was going to sea myself, to sea in a schooner, with a piping boatswain and pig-tailed singing seamen, to sea, bond for an unknown island, and to seek for buried treasure!

I would recommend this on to anyone – young or old.   I have already suggested Chris re-read it, and I am now going to encourage Elizabeth to read it.  Although, she needs little encouragement to read anything.  I loved it and am still singing Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest – Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!