Hold Fast to Dreams: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

(photo Public Playground on the Charles River, near Soldiers Field Road 06/1973, http://www.flickr.com/photos/usnationalarchives/3952795663/)

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

The Martin Luther King Jr. Center Archive opens Monday, January 16, 2012. It includes digital access to Dr. King's sermons, speeches, and letters, as well as images related to the Civil Rights Movement. On Monday, the United States commemorates the life and work of the civil rights leader. His well-known "I Have a Dream" speech still inspires us. (Read or hear it here.)

(photo http://www.fotopedia.com/items/flickr-1054179588) Martin Luther King, Jr., delivers his "I Have a Dream" speech, 1963.

Langston Hughes, Harlem Renaissance poet, says to "Hold fast to dreams," for without dreams our lives are dull and purposeless.(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/blacksnob/2938947823/sizes/m/in/photostream/)
His poem "Harlem [Dream Deferred"] implies dire consequences when a dream fails to come to fruition.



Kathy Mattea offers another look at dreams and dreamers who try to make the world a better place. In "Beautiful Fool," she sings, "Dreams weren't meant to come true, That's why they call 'em dreams."


What do you think? Are dreams--and striving for them--worth it? What are your dreams? What are you doing to make them come true?

Happy New Year! Welcome, 2012!

(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/rosemania/4419055059/ by Xuan Che)

Year in review, resolutions, and goals. If that's what you're looking for, click the links, because that is not this post!

This post is about looking forward with happy anticipation. Here's what I look forward to in 2012 (in no particular order:

-Connecting with friends, near & far, and making new friends

(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/statelibraryofnsw/3210637533/, Kangaroo & girls by Sam Hood)

-Time with family

(photo http://www.fotopedia.com/items/flickr-2609711377 by Shiny Things)

-Events--concerts, plays, movies, festivals, sports, art shows, vacations, and whatever else is offered in the region

(photo © Copyright David Lally and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

-Writing and meeting with area writers

(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliejordanscott/5945391448/ by Julie Jordan Scott)

-Reading books newly published and older ones I've missed. A link to popular authors' 2012 releases is here.

-Nature--plants, animals, landforms, climates, ecosystems, forces, wonders

(photo of Madeline Island, WI, copyright 2009, Jane Heitman Healy)


That's just for starters. 2012 looks to be full of promise!

What do you look forward to in the year ahead? I hope it is wonderful!

(photo of St. Croix Falls, WI, fireworks, copyright 2011, Jane Heitman Healy)

Christmas Stories New & Old

(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/vblibrary/5227409599/sizes/l/in/photostream/ by Enokson)

Though there's no snow falling here yet (and that's more than fine with me!), books are always calling! This time of year, it's time to dig out the old Christmas favorites and find some new favorites, too.

Some Christmas stories are standards based on songs or poems, such as "Rudolph" and "Frosty." Some are classics, such as Dickens' A Christmas Carol and Clement Moore's A Visit From St. Nicholas.

Two new Christmas books for children (which really means "all ages," don't you think?) popular in my region reflect the heritages of many of my area's residents. Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve, a South Dakota author, brings us a memory from her childhood on the Rosebud Reservation. The Christmas Coat: Memories of My Sioux Childhood takes us into the not-so-distant past on the plains. Virginia really needs a new winter coat, but so do the other kids she knows. When charity boxes arrive (called "Theast boxes" because they come from "The East"), a beautiful fur coat tempts her. But Virginia knows that, as the minister's daughter, she won't get first choice. Read the book to see how things work out for Christmas joy. The illustrations by Ellen Beier provide accurate detail of the times and situations to complement the story.

(photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/triplezero/3127235680/ triplezero)

Jan Brett's new Christmas book, Home for Christmas features Rollo, the runaway Swedish troll. Brett's signature border art and depiction of the action make this a fun story for young and old. Rollo has adventures with many different animals before he finds that home may be best after all.

For more Christmas book ideas, see this list from Horn Book magazine.

(photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/sycamoremoonstudios/4204652240/ Theresa, cheekycrows3)


We love stories of Santa, elves, trolls, and other magical creatures, but for me, Christmas magic is best told in the original Christmas story from the book of Luke. See Linus, of "Peanuts" fame, recite it in this 2 minute clip:



What stories are you delighting in this season?

Winter Wonderland

I intend to do an actual blog post soon, but in the meantime, here's something to tide you over--the Winter Wonderland at Falls Park in my city. It really does make me ooh & aah! Enjoy the video and find some wonder in your own neighborhood this season.

Thankful Thanku Challenge

(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/happy_serendipity/5690212418/ by happy_serendipity)


Thanksgiving Day has just passed, but I try to be thankful every day. Poet Esther Hershenhorn invented a poetry form called "Thanku." Yes, it is based on the haiku, with the 3 line, 5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables pattern, and the focus is on giving thanks. Here's my example:

(photo http://sweetsantuary.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/envelope-icon.gif)

Communication 2011
(A Thanku)

Ways to stay in touch
Email, letter, Facebook, phone,
Postcard, blog, smile, hug

(photo http://www.fotocommunity.com/pc/pc/display/12380416 by Fer Kazalz)

Now it's your turn. Give it a try in the comments section below! And thank you for staying in touch!

Thank You, Veterans

(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/fatguyinalittlecoat/5310405113/ by Justin Cozart)

Imagine you are a young man, raised on a farm in South Dakota, USA. Imagine you are sent to countries you have barely heard of to fight during World War II. You train with guys from states that previously meant nothing more to you than an outline on a map.

(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/dok1/1558842435/ Don O'Brien: "Okinawa September 1945, After 58 days on a troopship from France, we landed at Okinawa.The trip took that long because we stayed anchored for 3 weeks at MogMog awaiting orders after VJ Day. This photo was, as I recall, taken on the first day."


You and those guys ship out, and you rely on each other for your lives. Imagine being caught in a battle on a jungle island in the Pacific. Soldiers around you--guys you know--fall dead or injured. You could run to save yourself. Or you could try to help one of your own. What would you do?

(photo from Otis Archives. World War 2 - combat battle scenes (Pacific theater). A cavalry weapons troop moves from the beach past splintered trees and fires caused by the heavy bombardment preceding their landing on Leyte Island in the Philippines. Selected by Kathleen. http://www.flickr.com/photos/7438870@N04/2088150699/)

My husband's uncle, Howard Johnson, chose to help a fallen comrade, and in doing so, sustained injury himself. His wartime service earned him a Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal, Bronze Service Arrowhead, and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon.

(photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/publicresourceorg/493901420/ Carl Malamud)

When Howard's family went through his things after his death this summer, they found and displayed his Army uniform. In the pocket, all these years later, was his ticket home.

Howard went on to work, marry, and enjoy the freedoms he helped earn, as so many veterans have. Across the United States are men and women who served in the Armed Forces with the desire to preserve that freedom and to come home to experience it. On Veteran's Day, November 11, we honor them and remember those who did not come home.

Thank you, Howard Johnson, and all who have served and who are currently serving in the US Armed Forces.

(For more family history and WWII connections, see this blog post.)

If you have a veteran's story you'd like to tell, please leave it in the comments below.

Fairy Tales Fire the Imagination

Our imaginations are running rampant this weekend with Halloween, All Saints, and Dia de los Muertos celebrations.

A recent solo fall hike turned my imagination to fairy tales. The best known fairy tales and folk tales began as stories told hundreds of years ago and retold to each new generation. Many fairy tales, especially the ones from Europe, take place in a forest. Maybe Hansel and Gretel dropped bread crumbs in a place like this:

Will the Billy Goats Gruff's troll give me passage across this bridge?

Does a gingerbread house or big bad wolf lurk around this corner?

Is that La Llorona I hear weeping?

The Wizard of Oz is not a true fairy tale; still these trees remind me of the scene where Dorothy and her friends were attacked by the enchanted apple trees:

(Here's the scene, in case you forgot:)

Fairy tales hold some universal appeal to us as human beings in a world we can't control or fully understand. What is your favorite fairy tale or folk tale?

For more on fairy tales, see SurLaLune, the fairy tale website and my book, Once Upon a Time: Fairy Tales in the Library and Language Arts (or see my blog sidebar).