The Cache

Corner Pocket

"The best feeding time is autumn when, in a good year, the trees are laden with nuts and acorns. Some of this bounty is consumed, but many nuts are cached. Because they are industrious hoarders, they become thoroughly engrossed with their task, and frequently seem oblivious to the hazards of traffic. From the beginning of September, many are killed by cars when they attempt to cross busy streets."

Top Shelf

"Winter is a harsh survival test. By the first week in January, their buried larder is empty and to live, they are forced to eat pine seeds, buds, twigs, and bark. Even squirrels in the city feel the pinch of hunger at this time, and resort to raiding bird feeders...Tests have proved that peanuts, the staple "handout", contain insufficient nourishment to keep squirrels in good health."

Fast Food

 "A high percentage of nuts buried in autumn are never recovered and eventually take root.  Thus the grey squirrel makes an important contribution to the renewal of the trees upon which he feeds."

Yea, squirrels!

 

Could take Root

from: The Squirrels of Canada by S.E.Woods Jr. 

A Living Science Book

Charlotte Mason said that all subjects should be "illustrated and illuminated by books of literary value."

A few years ago I read such a book by science journalist Rebecca Skloot, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. It was fascinating, tragic and personal. As with any decent science book it made me think. I acquired a deeper knowledge of the history of genetic research and was swept into the realm of bioethics. When my son went to work in the lab at the Women's Research Hospital at Harvard I was able to have a surprisingly intelligent discussion with him about HeLa cells, their history and their place in science research today.

Mason tells us that "we can only cover a mere inch of the field of science, it is true; but the attitude of mind we get in our own little bit of work helps us to the understanding of what is being done elsewhere." This one living science book gave me a deeper understanding on one subject but opened my mind to other closely related topics

This week, I read the news headline with great interest: The National Institute of Health Brokers HeLa Genome Deal. The book had made such an impression on me that I could still recall the people involved and empathized with their motivation and celebrate their accomplishment.

Ms. Skloot, the author of the book, was interviewed afresh with her perspective on this unprecedented agreement:  August 9th CBC radio podcast . It was nice to hear her out loud voice as I felt I 'knew' her as I read her book.

A Mason education is a life. I read with my children for years and I continue to read for myself. A book like The Immortal Life Henrietta Lacks adds experience and knowledge to my life and I care to know more.

"The question is not how much does the youth know when he is finished with his education - but how much does he care? and about how any orders of things does he care?" Charlotte Mason

all quotes from: https://amblesideonline.org/CM/toc.html#6

Judged By It's Cover

Yup, bought a book because of how it looked;  the cover is textured in a lovely shade of weathered cream, the title is framed by a lovely subtle filigree with details of toadstools, mosquitoes and snakes, there is a damsel fly on the front cover and the title itself brought images of nature and beauty to my mind.

I was at a book sale that was selling thousands of almost mint condition used books at prices that made you wonder if you brought enough bags and money. The profits were to go to Raise A Reader foundation and buy new books for the children....yes, me too, the question of how deprived my children were by not having all new books. And like most of us bibliophiles, instead we had hundreds of books for our children because we took the time to scour the used book sections. But I digress.

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett not only looks like a great book but is a great read! I escaped to the Amazon for a week and thoroughly enjoyed the adventure.

Marina filled her lungs with frozen air and smelled both winter and spring, dirt and leftover snow with the smallest undercurrent of something green.  p. 45

or,

Marina leaned over the front of the boat and watched the lettuce compact beneath the pontoons while behind them the plants knitted themselves back together, smoothing over the path they had made without so much as a damaged leaf. We are here, Marina thought, and we were never here.   p.238

and,

That was Dr. Rapp's great lesson in the Amazon, in science: Never be so focused on what you're looking for that you overlook the thing you actually find.   p. 246

Ann Patchett herself gives us insight as to the gift of  fiction:

Reading fiction is important. It is a vital means of imagining a life other than our own, which in turn makes us more empathetic beings. Following complex story lines stretches our brains beyond the 140 characters of sound-bite thinking, and staying withing the world of a novel gives us the ability to be quiet and alone, two skills that are disappearing faster than the polar icecaps. (New York Times, April 17, 2012)

Take a chance on a beautiful book. Sometimes the illustrations are worth whatever might be written around them. And like my grandmother always said: There are too many great books in this world to waste your time on a boring one. Have you added a new author to your list of great reads?

A Snow Plow and a Spider

I watch an adorable four year old most Wednesday nights while his parents lead our high school youth group.  Last week he and I snuggled in to read a huge pile of books. He excitedly handed me one favorite after another, the same way my children did, never seeming to tire of the same old story.  Every week I sneak in a few new titles and this week, in celebration of a recent snow fall, we read Katy and the Big Snow by Virginia Lee Burton.

I love all her stories as well as the illustrations that fill the page with tiny details and so much to look at. As I was enjoying each simple scene I suddenly was reminded of a previous 'friend' I had studied.

"But Katy was so big and strong

she had to stay at home, 

because there was not enough snow for her to plow."

But Spider was so shy and wary

he had to curl the leaf,

because that was the only way to feel secure.

I gleefully showed my daughter my personal connection.  She whimsically looked at the illustration of Katy in the garage smiling as she remembered the story. I then showed her my photo of the spider and she had to agreed that yes, it was quite like Katy preparing to plow.  Then, in disgust, she said I had ruined the sweet image of Katy diligently plowing out a city from the big snow.  To her the spider is a shudder-inducing creature that  now replaces dear Katy in a once beloved book.

Connections our children make between different stories, ideas and adventures they have are as different as you and me. You may not 'get' my connection between Katy and the spider, but it was mine to make and mine to keep mulling over. I wonder if the spider's big snow is a big insect instead. I wonder how long he waits in that one leaf like the snow plow in a garage. Katy has a purpose proper to her as does the spider. 

The spider laid in wait for days

so he could catch just the right insects for his supper

Then he went home satiated.

Then....and only then did the spider stop.