"Irrevocably a Reader"

"To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark."  

                                                            Victor Hugo (author of Les Misérables)

Reading. 
There is something profoundly beautiful, almost sublime in the fact that God has made us capable of inventing symbols that when combined in diverse patterns can capture the perceptions, memories, and thoughts that swirl within our minds, and coherently relay them in physical form to others, so that they too may understand and share in the moment.*

 *God himself chose the written word (the Bible) as the vessel by which to speak personally to us!

Consider also that at one time or another we have all been ignorant of what those symbols meant and had to devote many of our early years to mastering this fundamental skill. The anthologist and essayist, Alberto Manguel, illustrates this wonderfully:

"At one magical instant in your early childhood, the page of a book–that string of confused, alien ciphers–shivered into meaning.Words spoke to you, gave up their secrets; at that moment, whole universes opened.You became, irrevocably, a reader."

This prompts me to ponder yet another fascinating aspect of learning to read...
The innocence of childhood. 
A child, though naturally sinful, has a naive beauty to their actions, words, and thoughts that have not yet been sullied by the deception and waywardness of the world. It is a common theme in literature, most predominately in William Blake's Songs (poems) of Innocence and Experience (maybe you're familiar with his poem The Tyger).
Jesus spoke to his disciples in Matthew 18 about the importance of childlike faith and innocence when he said,

"Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

And the Apostle Paul wrote about the beauty of childhood and growing up: 

"When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways" (I Corinthians 13:11). 

So how, you might ask, does this relate to reading?
As I endeavoured to express before, the written word is a beautiful thing, but there is also a beauty in the journey of reading - beginning as a child, guileless and unassuming, the world slowly opening and growing as they themselves grow and gain experience. 
The books I read as a child - even the simplest picture books - shaped and reflected the perceptions I had of the world. They were tiny stepping stones on the road to maturation and gave me an appreciation for literature that continues to grow and impact me every day.
With that said I would like to share with you ten books that capture and reflect my own early steps into the wide world of reading and literature (by no means an exhaustive list - it was difficult to narrow it down to so few!). 
My idea for this came about while I was sorting through some things in the basement and stumbled upon a collection of books that I read and treasured as a young girl. Poignant, delightful memories flooded over me. As I flipped through the books I was transported back in time and reconnected with a younger version of myself. I could remember how I felt, where I sat, what I thought, and the unique circumstances of my life at the time.
I was reminded of how small and simple my world was - even how my perception of time had not yet fully developed (the childhood bliss of not looking and planning beyond the moment. When life consisted of a day - or at most a week). 
I've placed them in an approximate order of when I read them, so as to loosely chart five years of my life (#1 being what I read when I was about five or six, and #10 being what I read when I was ten or eleven).

1. Christmas Trolls by Jan Brett

This book always brings a smile to my face as it reminds me of my first year in school and how it sparked my young imagination.
I never really believed in Santa Claus as a child, but for a time I did believe in these trolls. During kindergarten class I distinctly remember my classmates and I sitting on our little mats in anticipation of story time. That day our teacher read us this delightful Ukrainian folk tale. It tells of two trolls stealing small Christmas decorations and goodies from a family, until the girl discovers why everything is disappearing and teaches the trolls that Christmas is not found in getting and the items themselves, but in giving and loving. Our teacher decided to bring the story to life! Over the next week, things started to disappear in the classroom. "Could it be the trolls!?" we wondered excitedly. 
So we wrote the trolls a note, asking them to return the missing items to our classroom. The next day everything was back in its rightful place.

2. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett

More people are probably familiar with the movie than the book (the book's better!). Imagine a world where people never have to cook and all their food comes from the skies! 
Every time I flipped through the illustrations of hamburger clouds and orange juice rain, my mouth would water and I would picture myself climbing up a jello mountain, sailing on a sandwich boat, or playing in ice-cream snow. Now wouldn't that be fun!

3. The Boxcar Children Series by Gertrude Chandler Warner

Warner's story (set sometime in the 1930's or 40's) of four orphan children seeking refuge and making a home in an abandoned boxcar was based off of true events. I was fascinated by how the four siblings worked together and lived on their own - washing and fishing in the river, cooking over an open fire, and making the boxcar comfortable and clean. In the end, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny are found and adopted by their rich Grandpa. The rest of the series recounts their adventures and the mysteries they solve along the way. It was always an adventure going to the library to take out another book from the series (there were over a hundred, but only the first ten were written by Warner). These books also served as my introduction to the genre of mystery and led me to read the Nancy Drew series and more recently, the excellent Sherlock Holmes mysteries. 

4. The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting

Lofting dedicated this story to "All children. Children in years and children in heart." It recounts the life and travels of the singular Doctor Dolittle - an animal doctor who under the tutelage of his parrot learns to speak to animals. Along with his animal friends, Dolittle sails across the ocean to Africa where he has many adventures and meets a pushmi-pullyu, a "very shy" creature like a gazelle with two heads; one at each end of its body.
I remember wishing when I was younger that I could speak to animals (what kid doesn't?). And I could - at least when I was reading this book and had befriended, among others, Dab-dab the duck, Jip the dog, and Polynesia the parrot.

5. Midnight in the Dollhouse by Marjorie Filley Stover

This story follows tomboy Melissa, living in the wake of the American Civil War, who must stay in bed for four months to heal her broken hip (she fell out of a tree). Before her accident she showed very little interest in dolls, but with nothing else to do besides read, her family pitches in to buy her dolls and build her a dollhouse. What she doesn't know is that at night, her dolls come to life, and not only that, they secretly help Melissa and her family find the family fortune that her grandfather hid at the beginning of the civil war.
Melissa's dolls reflected my desire (and many children's) for toys and stuffed animals to come to life!

6. The Cricket in Time's Square by George Selden

A cricket, a mouse, and a cat - an unlikely trio. This is a story about their friendship, as well as a celebration of music, culture, and the diversity of the countryside and the city. Of course I didn't understand all of that when I first read this book; I was simply captivated by Chester, the cute talking cricket who gets carried in a picnic basket from the country to New York City, and whose ability to chirp classical music draws eager listeners, and ultimately assists a struggling Italian immigrant family at their newspaper stand.

7. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

I was first introduced to the fascinating world of Middle Earth by my dad who read this book aloud to me when I was about eight or nine.
Stolen treasure, dwarves, elves, goblins, giant spiders, a cunning dragon, a wise wizard, mysterious forests, a magic ring... and then amidst these Homeric characters and against this epic backdrop stands the unlikely hero: Bilbo Baggins, an ordinary Hobbit fond of his pipe and the comforts of home, who surprises everyone - including himself - with his courage. Bilbo's simple acts of bravery encouraged me in my own tentative steps out of my front door and into the wide world.
But that was only the beginning of the journey! A year later my dad would read me The Lord of the Rings!

8. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo

Edward Tulane cannot move or speak, but he can think and feel. He is in fact a china rabbit, a unique and expensive doll owned by a rich girl named Abilene. And then one day he is lost - taken from Abilene's arms and thrown over the side of a boat by some rowdy boys. Thus begins an incredible journey from the bottom of the ocean, to the coarse hands of a fisherman, to a garbage heap, to the tender arms of a dying child, and eventually to a fancy and lonely toy shop. The miracle of this unique and often sad tale takes place within Edward. As the blurb on the back of the books says, "even a heart of the most breakable kind can learn to love, to lose, and to love again." 

9. Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery

Anne Shirley will always be a "bosom friend"; a "kindred spirit." She sparked my imagination, introduced me to the timeless poetry, romance, and beauty through which she saw her every day life, and made me laugh (and sympathize) when she suffered from mishaps or let her wild imagination run away with her. The other characters that make up the story's cast are just as colourful: sharp and serious Marilla, quiet and shy Matthew, busybody Mrs. Lynde, handsome and smart Gilbert Blythe, and elegant Diana Barry. You might even consider the orchards, fields, and shores of L. M. Montgomery's beloved Prince Edward Island a character in and of itself, with the enchanting descriptions and names that Anne and the author bestow upon them throughout the book. A true Canadian classic! 

10. The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff

Though I had read historical fiction before, this book was a great initiator in forming my love for this genre. The majority of Sutcliff's books take place in England and Scotland during the years of the Roman occupation, the Viking and Norman invasions, the English Civil War, and various conflicts in the Scottish Highlands. Sutcliff's ability to describe the landscape, and develop the characters not only made me feel as if I were there, they helped to define my appreciation and interest in the history of these countries. 
This story follows Marcus Aquila a young centurion stationed in Northern Britain to keep the Celtic tribes under control. Marcus embarks on a dangerous quest into the wilds of Caledonia (Scotland) to discover the fate of his father's legion which mysteriously disappeared years before. The themes of friendship, belonging, and perseverance that emerge throughout the story were very meaningful to my own life.

Now that I've shared with you a few of the books I read and treasured as a young girl; what books played an integral part in your childhood? 

Why Do We Remember...?

War Cemetery in Ottawa, 2013

The German novel, All Quiet on the Western Front, begins with a short but powerful inscription:

"This book is to be neither an accusation nor a confession, and least of all an adventure, for death is not an adventure to those who stand face to face with it. It will try simply to tell of a generation of men who, even though they may have escaped shells, were destroyed by the war."

Erich Maria Remarque's exposé of the Great War became an immediate bestseller in 1928, and is considered by many worldwide, as the greatest war novel of all times. Not only does the German author raise questions and reveal different aspects of the war (nationalism, politics, shell shock, trench warfare, death, etc.), but he explores how they emotionally and physically affect one soldier (named Paul Baumer) and thus exposes how an entire generation of men were bombarded and wounded by the horrors of war.
Remarque himself fought in the Great War (WWI) and recovered five times from major wounds. When Adolf Hitler and his Nazis Party began rising to power during the 1930's, they branded Remarque's anti-war book as unpatriotic and used it as kindling in many of their book burnings. They also spread rumours that the famous author was secretly a Jew, hiding his identity by changing his last name from Kramer to Remarque (Remarque spelled backwards). In fear for his life, Remarque fled from Germany to Switzerland and later to the United States, where he remained until the end of the war.
In 1930, a film adaption of All Quiet on the Western Front met with considerable praise across America, but in Europe great controversy and outrage arose over this "anti-heroic and disturbing" depiction of a war whose aftermath was still a fresh and painful reality, like a great wound that has just begun to scab over. Dietrich Bonhoeffer - a German theologian and later a spy who plotted against Hitler and paid for his actions with his life - watched it in an American theatre with his French friend Jean Lasserre. They were both moved and brought to tears during the film, especially during a scene where the main character, Paul, stabs a French soldier in a shell hole, only to be forced to lie for hours beside him as he slowly dies from his injuries. 
Bonhoeffer, a German, and Lasserre, a Frenchman, sitting beside each other as friends, watching their countrymen kill each other. 
They probably considered the horrific fact that if they had been a little younger, Bonhoeffer could have been the one stabbing Lasserre or vise versa.  

I determined to reread this book recently as it coincides with the hundredth anniversary of the First World War. I find the novel all the more poignant as it comes from the perspective of a German soldier; a perspective that is often neglected in North American literature.
A hundred years is a large milestone to reach; a good point from which to look back and consider the past and to reconnoiter the future. As Canadians we wear poppies as a symbol of our remembrance and take part in memorial ceremonies for those who have sacrificed their lives for our country.
Why is it important for us to remember? You, my dear readers, have probably considered this question in some way or other. There are many answers that can be given and perspectives to be considered and I would like to share with you one of the greatest and most imperative.
The majority of us cannot truly understand the horrors of war - we have not experienced them. Canada has not had war on its own soil for over two hundred years (the War of 1812). The numbers of veterans who keep the memories of the World Wars alive and personal are dwindling. They will soon fade completely into the archives of history. 
In the Old Testament, God instructed the Israelites to establish rock memorials after witnessing his Almighty Power. This was to protect man against his own forgetful nature and to benefit the next generations when they asked about a memorial’s significance. People could share about the event and keep the memory alive and in the process strengthen their faith (read Deuteronomy 6:20-24 and Joshua 4:6-7). Jesus later instructed his disciples at the Passover meal to eat the bread and wine "in remembrance of (him)" (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). We don't want to turn our backs on memory and forget like the Israelites often did; turning their backs on God and continually repeating their sins. 

We remember so that we don't forget.


Resources:

Metaxas, Eric. Bonhoeffer. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2010. Print.

Remarque, Erich Maria. All Quiet on the Western Front. Trans. Wheen, A. W. New York: Ballantine Books, 1982. Print. 

SparkNotes Editors. All Quiet on the Western Front. SparkNotes, 2007. Web. 11 November, 2014.

Szterszky, Subby. Remembrance of Things Past and Present. Focus Insights, 2014. Web. 11 November, 2014.

Vance, Jonathan. Remembrance. Canada's History Magazine, October - November 2014. Pages 30-39. Print.

The Beginning of a Journey

This is not a 'normal' travel blog. I am no globe-trotter with insights into the realm of high-class tourism. I have no knowledge of the best routes for a backpacking pilgrimage, and nor will I be able to recount any grand escapades that I've had abroad - for I have had very few of my own. Instead it is here that I desire to introduce you, my dear readers, to a world of depth, emotion, beauty, and excitement: the world of history and literature. 

"Books...blah! History...boring!"

But wait! I would encourage you to give this a chance. The poet Dr. Seuss wrote that,

"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go."

Books are like windows. They give us a chance to live outside of ourselves; to see the world through other people's eyes, unrestricted by place or time. They bestow upon us fresh perspectives, often shining light into our own thoughts and actions. 
But then you may consider: Is this true of all books? The answer, sadly, is no. Not all books are worth pouring our precious time and thoughts into, and neither are they healthy for our minds or souls. As Philippians 4:8 says:

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things" (NIV).

and

"I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless" (Psalm 101:31, ESV).

 We must have wisdom as we consider what we read just as we might look at the rating and content of a movie, or read the lyrics of a particular song. When we read, we have the opportunity to dig beyond the surface, to ask questions, and to be contemplative. 
Have you ever considered what makes a book "good"? Is it the fact that its popular, filled with action, or makes us laugh...or is there something more? 

But I'm getting ahead of myself... :)

Just as reading fills my soul, learning about history is (at least for me) like an invigorating search for buried treasure. We often get discouraged and dissuaded from pursuing history in school because of monotone teachers and an excessive amount of facts and dates, but the past is more than that! Its a story about people written by a Sovereign God. And guess what? Each of us gets to play a part in that story!

Life is a great and profound journey filled with craggy mountains, valleys of sorrow, refreshing streams, and meadows of repose and joy. Isn't it encouraging to know that we are not alone; that others have traveled this road before us (Hebrews 12:1), and that we have the opportunity to learn about them through the archives of history, or to befriend them through the pages of fiction?

So I invite you to join me, not as a tourist with the eyes of one who sees simply what he wants to see, but as a traveler who truly sees and experiences every aspect of the world around him. I promise you that you will not be disappointed. It is an enriching journey filled with unending adventure!

This is how I hope to orchestrate my posts each month:

• First three weeks - simple poems, short videos, quotes, thoughts, etc.
• Fourth week - A review of a book I've read.  

Note (May 4, 2015) - Its quite evident that I have not been keeping to this schedule. The expectations I had for myself were a little too grandiose (at this time in my life its quite impossible for me to blog every week), but  I will continue to write when I can - hopefully once a month. There is so much I wish to share with you, my dear readers!

I am far from being an expert on these topics, I simply have a passion for them and a desire to share my discoveries with you as I make my way along the road.  So if you decide to join me, think of me only as...

Your fellow traveling companion,

Sarah