What Makes Me Happy...(Part II)

Inspiring a child to be enthusiastic about learning-even if it is about about a eurocentric literature canon.

Earlier yesterday my sister switched off reading pages and passages from Thomas Hardy's "The Mayor Casterbridge" while waiting for a doctor's appointment at an urgent care facility. Her initial hesitancy, best manifested/demonstrated in her insiduous attempts to weazle out of the reading by claiming that she lost the book, soon turned into an engaged reading session-as we stayed, parked on my driveway 10 extra minutes before going inside to finish up a chapter. And is my pathetically nerdy attempt to generate a deeper interest in the text. I call it the high school, celebrity-focused gossip girl approach :

Me wrote at 4:47pm
dude-i can't believe he sold her to the sailor! I wonder how that relationship is going to work out. What do you think?

Sister wrote at 5:07pm
omg idk!
i think he is going to treat herr better than her drunk husband!
i should find out huh?

Me wrote at 5:07pm
yes-and im in the market to find out with you!

Things that make me happy (Part I)

Kids that maintain a vivid imagination marked by precocity-one that does not let the visual cacophony of our everyday lives encroach on its boundaries. I was reminded of such gloriousness when I stumbled upon a short story written by my youngest brother at age 7, BVG (before video games):

Once upon a time there was a snake named Dalegman meaning “one with two legs”. Dalegman was hated among his snake tribe, he was an exile. The reason of his exile was because he had a birth defect that made him grow 2 legs. Dalegman thought that the other snakes were jealous of him having 2 legs. Dalegman lived on his own ever since he was exiled from his tribe. He hunted, fought his own battles, built his own snake burrows, and gathered his own resources. He had the ability to survive and he learned to be clever and sly. He now realized over 7 years why he was exiled when he had found the snake sanctuary’s special writings, the writing states: “…Snakes who are two legged due to the fact that the first snake was different and two legged tried to change us all but failed….” Dalegman would show the tribe that two legged should be respected as others should be to. He was planning an invasion against the tribe. One year later Dalegman appears among the village hills with an army of other snakes from other parts of Snaky-Planet. Dalegman charged forth killing no one but showing how indignant he was because he was an exile. After the invasion, Dalegman convinces the tribe about respecting not only others but different types of snakes. Soon Dalegman is promoted to King Snake and makes sure no one hates one another because al snake has two legs.