doors to worlds unknown...

I don't know about you, but I am incredibly fascinated by doors/doorways. They're so symbolic.

A (by no means comprehensive) visual list of a few of my favorites.

This is a bonus post. Two in one evening! You will be dreadfully spoiled, I'm afraid...

Anyhow. I was looking through some of my so-called "poetry"* this evening and re-discovered this poem. I wrote it after I'd heard someone close to me had recently had a miscarriage. I was so sad, not only because I hurt for that person, but also because it seemed like I'd been hearing of more miscarriages than healthy births in the past little while. So I was sad and went outside for quiet, grieving type of time by myself. I sat on a picnic table in the dark and looked out over the valley, letting the warm spring night seep into my mind. As I sat there I watched the outline of the mountain against the star-lit sky. I noticed after a while that one bright star was closer to the ridge than it had been. So I watched it out of sight, and let go of the grief as I let go of the star.

That's the background to this poem. Sometimes I like it, and sometimes I think it is awfully sappy.  So I won't be offended if that's what you think. :)






Star-said Farewell~

The star disappeared behind the mountain

And with it disappeared your unknown face.

Sweet child, have fun in heaven tonight

We earth-bound pilgrims are grieving

The loss of your unheard laughter here.

How can you love someone so much

And you’ve never met them?

Sweet child…

We’ll miss you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*Barbarian: I know you disapprove of free-verse being referred to as 'poetry'. You may substitute the word 'creatrio' if you wish.

The Liebster Award

So I was notified via comment that I was tagged by Bevy at treasuredupandpondered.blogspot.com  with the the Liebster Award. Ha, sounds like fun, I thought. So here goes.  But first some stuff that I snitched from her site, to explain a few things. (Thanks, Bev!)

What is a Liebster Award?

A Liebster Award is a traveling award that is awarded to new bloggers with less than 200 followers. Those nominated then pass the award on to 11 other bloggers who also have less than 200 followers.

Along with the nomination, there are a few rules I have to follow within this post.

THE RULES:

1. Post eleven facts about yourself.
2. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you and create eleven questions for people you’ve nominated.
3. Choose eleven people (with fewer than 200 followers) to give this award to and link them in your post.
4. Go to their page and tell them.
5. Remember, no tag backs.

Except, I, hah... um... am not sure that I KNOW 11 bloggers who would want to participate. So, I may only tag several. Or none at all.

Without further ado:




 Eleven Facts You Possibly May Not Have Known About Me Before This Time In History

1. I live beside a river/creek.
    (Oh, wait. If you've been around this blog for awhile, you've probably figured that out. But I needed to make sure you knew that. It's pretty important.)

2. I have a tiny, crescent-shaped scar on my left thumb.
    (That isn't very important, but it's random.)

3. I like pretzels.
    (A lot.)

4. I hate snakes.
    (A lot.)

5. I think snorkeling is fun.
    (That really has to be the strangest word. Ever.)

6. Train whistles make me feel at home wherever I am at the moment I hear them.
    (I used to live beside a railroad. Free fact.)

7. I'm more of a nightowl than an earlybird.
    (Just ask my family.)

8. If I'd learn another language, I'd learn Latin. Or Hebrew. Or Gaelic.
    (Only it's more likely that I'll learn PA Dutch, because I know people who speak it.)

9. My drivers license states that I am 5 feet 3 inches tall.
    (I know, because I just had to renew it.)

10. If I could go anywhere in the world, just for the fun of it, I would visit the Faroe Islands.
     (They are the most.beautiful.island.place.i've.ever.seen. Period.)

11. My favorite color is blue.
     (Or green.)



   
   
The Questions Asked, and the Attempted Answers

1. Your blog title/name?  How did it come about... is there a story?
     Yes. There is a story. Literally. It is the title of a book by a German man named Quint Buccholz. It's a fantastic book. Literally.   It also happens to be one of my favorites. I was completely fascinated with the idea of a "collector of moments", so I became one.

2. Books.  Who is your favorite author?  What is your style?
    This is tough. I like so many different styles, you know?  I usually tell folks who ask this question that the kind of books I mostly enjoy reading can be found in the Juvenile or Young Adult Section of the library. Only I'm leaning more and more towards the Children's Section these days. (They have to have good illustrations though)   Favorite author?  Hmmmm....  Patricia MacLachlan, Kate DiCamillo, Jerry Spinelli, Robert McCloskey, Elizabeth Goudge, Beverly Cleary, etc.

3. Speaking of Style.  Who/what inspires you in your wardrobe selection?
    I like fall. I wear a lot of browns, greens, and blues. I am inspired by classic timeless nautical types of ensembles. *cough*  When I make the effort.

4. If you're a mom! - Any advice you could share?  If you're not... What do you wish you could share?
    I am not a mom. But I have lots of younger cousins who I take care of from time to time. Here is my advice. Ask them lots of questions and then listen, really listen, to their answers.

5. In blogging.. Do you share your Faith?  Why or Why not?
    Because of the nature of my blog (sharing moments or events that I notice), it could be tied in anywhere. I don't have method for sharing or not sharing. Maybe I should. :)

6. Collections... What is yours?  Baskets?  Cookbooks?  - How did you get started?
     I collect libraries.  Well, library cards. We used to spend quite a good part of our summers away from home, and got to know a lot of different libraries fairly well. I love exploring a new library and finding my old book friends. Library cards are a good way to remember them. Thing is, sometimes you have to be a resident of that county or state in order to qualify for a card, so I have collected more libraries than I have proof of.

7. Do you have that one "best friend" - what makes her a great friend?  Give me just two-three words.
     She listens to me, laughs at me, laughs with me, challenges me.

8. Pizza or Stromboli? Would that be homemade or "Take Out"?
     Pizza. Homemade. Yum.

9. Camera advice...is needed.  What would you recommend?
    Ask my dad. :)   And here's a tidbit. Make sure your horizons are level. But not always. :)

10. And your favorite flower is...?
     Hydrangea, calla lilies, California poppies (any kind of poppies, really), peonies, queen anne's lace.

11. Tell me that one idiosyncrasy you LOVE about yourself..
    I almost always have bubbles or a candle in my handbag.  I really like that about my handbag. :)



The Questions I Carefully Crafted For My Victims

1. What was your favorite kid's book during your growing up years, and what is your favorite kid's book now?

2. What concept in the Bible do you keep coming back to and hashing over and studying and thinking about?

3. If bubbles never popped, what color should they be?

4. What is your favorite quote, and why is it your favorite quote?  (ha. two-in-one. gotcha.)

5. If you were the ruler of a small country, what would be the first rule you'd outlaw?

6. If you could be a character in any book, which character would you be, and why?

7. When you're in a coffee shop, what drink do you order the oftenest?

8. And while you're sitting there drinking it, are you most likely to be: people-watching, reading, singing, writing, or gazing out the window?

9. If you could take a ride on or in anything, what would it be?  You're allowed to say Pegasus.

10. What is your favorite thing about fall?

11. Why would you never _____________________?



Bonus question, in case you feel like it:  Could you please give me writing advice? Any kind. Long or short. Thank you.





And I tag: no one.  Yes, I know, I'm not playing by the rules, and yes, I know, it's incredibly cheesy to not tag anyone.  Here are my excuses.

1. I don't know bloggers who "do" forwards, or tag things.

2. I'm feeling too lazy.

3. This means anyone may answer the questions. I'd love it.

4. You may answer in a comment. Or a post.

5. You may answer all or a select few of the posed questions. Whatever suits your fancy.


Have at it.  :)

 

In my various travels

today, I stopped in at the thriftstore to drop off some donations, and afterwards looked through the children's book section. A good idea, or a bad one, depending on your point of view, as I came away with nine books.
   I decided to share some of the joy. So, a quote from each book. The only problem is; I chose most of these books due in large part to their wonderful illustrations and that's rather, shall we say, limited on here. Oh well. I guess you'll just have to borrow them from the library.



"Harry was a white dog with black spots who liked everything, except... getting a bath. So one day when he heard the water running in the tub, he took the scrubbing brush... and buried it in the back yard. Then he ran away from home."
  
    -Harry, the Dirty Dog, by Gene Zion and illustrated by Margaret Bloy Graham





"Brian found a salamander in the woods. It was a little orange salamander that crawled through the dried leaves of the forest floor.
   The salamander was warm and cozy in the boy's hand. 'Come live with me,' Brian said.
   He took the salamander home.
'Where will he sleep?' his mother asked.
'I will make him a salamander bed to sleep in. I will cover him with leaves that are fresh and green, and bring moss that looks like little stars to be a pillow for his head. I will bring crickets to sing him to sleep and bullfrogs to tell him good-night stories.'"
   
      -the Salamander Room, by Anne Mazer and illustrated by Steve Johnson







"'If you become a tightrope walker and walk across the air," said the bunny, 'I will become a little boy and run into a house.
  'If you become a little boy and run into a house,' said the mother bunny, 'I will become your mother and catch you in my arms and hug you.'
  'Shucks,' said the bunny, 'I might just as well stay where I am and be your little bunny.'
  And so he did.
  'Have a carrot,' said the mother bunny."

     -The Runaway Bunny, by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd







"You can knit a kitten mittens
And perhaps that cat would purr.
You could fit a fox with socks
That exactly match his fur.

You could make a goat a coat
With a collar trimmed in mink;
Or give a pig a wig
In a dainty shade of pink.

But never tease a weasel;
This is very good advice.
A weasel will not like it
And teasing isn't nice!"

      -Never Tease a Weasel, by Jean Conder Soule and illustrated by Denman Hampson







"Often in the winter, when the wind drove with a roar over the prairies and came thundering up the creek, making the tepees shudder and strain, Little Wolf would listen to the wind and think it was the stampede of the buffaloes. Then he would snuggle warmly under the buffalo robe that was his blanket and would be thankful for the shelter of his home. And sometimes he would go very far down the shadow ways of sleep and would meet the buffaloes as they came up from the lake, with the water shining on their shaggy coats and their black horns gleaming in the moon. And the buffaloes would begin by being very terrible, shaking their great heads at him as if they intended to kill him there and then. But later they would come up close, and smell him, and change their minds, and be friendly after all.
   Little Wolf was only ten years old, but he could run faster than any of his friends. And the wildest pony was not too wild for him to catch and ride. But the great thing about him was that he had no fear. He knew that if an angry bull bison or a pack of prairie wolves ran him down, there would be nothing left of him but his bones. And he was well aware that if he fell into the hands of his people's enemies, the Assiniboins, he would be killed and scalped as neatly as could be. Yet none of these things terrified him. Only, being wise for his age, he had a clear understanding that, for the present, it was better to keep out of their way.
   But of all the thoughts that ran this way and that in his quick brain, the one that galloped the hardest was the thought of the great lake to the south where the buffaloes began. And as the days lengthened and he could smell springtime on the warm blowing air, the thought grew bigger and bigger in Little Wolf's mind. At last it was so very big that Little Wolf could not bear it any longer; and so, one morning, very early, before the village was awake, he crept out of the tepee and stole along below the junipers and tall firs till he came to the spot where the ponies were hobbled."

    -Where the Buffaloes Begin, by Olaf Baker and illustrated (beautifully) by Stephen Gammell







"'It's a submarine from another planet!' bellowed the coach.
'Call the police! Call the Navy!'
'No! It's a tadpole!' cried Louis. 'He's my pet!'
   The coach was upset and confused.
'You have until tomorrow,' he cried, 'to get that creature out of the pool!'

   -The Mysterious Tadpole, by Steven Kellogg and illustrated by same






"And the next morning someone had put up a sign that read:

NO DESSERTS EVER
UNLESS PUPPIES NEVER
DIG HOLES UNDER THIS
FENCE AGAIN!"

   -The Poky Little Puppy, by Janette Sebring Lowrey and illustrated by Gustaf Tenggren







"'Henry,' shouted his mother as she got up off the ground. 'You learned to play dead!'
   'No, Ma,' cried Henry. 'I learned to play the flute. Listen.'
He stood up, took a deep breath, and played as he had never played before. Hearing the music the animals slowly returned to the clearing, and as they listened to Henry's concert, each added his own voice to the melody."

   -Henry Possum, by Harold Berson and illustrated by same







"'I think I'll have a bit of a soak,' Elliot's father announced.
'Wait!' Elliot said. 'I left my penguin in there.'
'I'll set him on the hamper and do my best not to splash.'


'ELLIOT!"


Elliot rushed to the door.
'Young man, where did this penguin come from?' Elliot's father demanded.
'The southern tip of Argentina,' Elliot said."

   -One Cool Friend, by Toni Buzzeo and illustrated by David Small