speaking of fairies

Books are beginning to take over the house and stories are beginning to fill my teeny brain to overflowing these days. Over the weekend I did a little of the life reconnoitering I was planning, and a whole lot of reading.

While we Greenes have always been a family of readers, I find myself become more and more aware of the important role books and stories play. To me, reading is a way to experience the world from home, provides insights into other worldviews and experiences, a way to confirm or solidify my own thoughts and beliefs and the best form of entertainment. Books are most certainly brain food.

Lately, I'm seeing a little renaissance happening in my reading habits. A re-awakening of my childhood fascination with fairy tales and folk stories. When I was younger I would read every book about faerie I could get my hands on; every poem, every description. And here I am again, reading these tales birthed in ancient stories and traditions again and enjoying them just as much as before.

I don't know if my reading patterns "mean" anything, but as I continue to fall down the rabbit hole I am beginning to tune into the idea that fairy tales teach us just as much as they entertain us. By creating allegory for the unexplained and inexplicable, fairy tales provide a window into the soul, be it light and airy or dark and scary. (How's that for poetry!)

I just happened on these two links today, both of them speaking of stories. I particularly like the New York Times one, as the connection to medicine really provides an interesting look at the sort of work I've been doing lately.

Practicing Medicine Can Be Grimm Work - Valeria Gribben

Fairytale Reflections - Joanne Harris

** They're everywhere, these accounts of the importance of story and myth! Let me add this artist's musings about fairy tale and nature, as well as her work on the cover of a book I'm about to order.

Dark Mountain - Rima Staines

words of wisdom

As I continue to think about how to live life more simply, I've been re-reading several of the books I own and re-discovering some of the treasure trove of words sitting on my bookshelves. Last night I came across a book of quotes Mother sent me some time ago. Here's just a few that stood out to me. I though you might enjoy them too.


"May I be medicine for the sick and weary. May I be their doctor and their nurse until the sickness appears no more. May I quell the pains of hunger and thirst with rains of food and drink. May I be a torch for those in need of light, a bed for those in need of a bed, and a servant for those in need of service." ~ Shantideva (7th century), India


"The true secret of giving advice is: after you have given it, to be perfectly indifferent as to whether it is taken or not, and never persist in trying to set people right." ~ Hannah Whitall Smith (1832-1911, USA)


"Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you." ~ Nathanial Hawthorne (1804-1864), USA


"Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love." ~ St. Francis of Assisi (c.1181-1226), Italy

travels through other worlds

Lately there's been a lot of good book reading going on. Perhaps this is due to the summer lull, where the sun is up past 8:00 p.m. and the porch is more inviting than the couch. That, and I think I've actually seen every episode of "Law and Order," soo...

As I've been working through my huge (and always growing) stack of books to read, there have been a few duds, but most have been well-written, interesting, entertaining and thought-provoking. Here's a little summary of some recent nights well-spent in the garden:

• Travels with Charlie in Search of America, John Steinbeck ~ This book was recommended by an older gentleman at the dog park because I have a poodle, and well... John Steinbeck had a poodle. It was fascinating to read Steinbeck's observations and opinions on the state of the nation as he traveled across it gypsy-style.
• Greenmantle, Charles de Lint ~ What can I say, I love this author. He makes the ordinary world magical and weaves tales that make you feel you are experiencing yourself.
• Eva Moves the Furniture, Margot Livesey ~ Lately, ghosts have been on my mind and this novel treats them in an unusual and interesting way. It is nice to be pleasantly surprised by a book you weren't too sure you wanted to read.
• A Good Dog: The Story of Orson, Who Changed My Life, Jon Katz ~ I cried, yes I did. I loved reading about how this man's dog was the catalyst for a major lifestyle change.
  

reading through the stack

What's been happening around here these days? A whole lot of what you see in the photo... reading, sipping hot beverages and watching the rain. It suits my mood these days. I love when I can just sit down and get involved in a book and well, just forget about the rest of the world for a bit!

i need a secret garden

Right now, the world outside my door looks pretty much like this:

Grey and lonely. With lots of random black birds swarming above the tree tops.

To keep the winter blues away I've been trying to embrace the grey, dismal out-of-doors. Yesterday at the library I picked up "The Secret Garden," by Frances Hodgson Burnett. My parents have me a beautiful illustrated copy of it at home and I remember reading it for the first time thinking how neat it was to have a little hidden garden. It's now been years since I read it, but the mood of the book is set in what seems to me to be exactly what I see out my window right now. Grey and dismal. I need a secret garden of my own.