I set out in life like many idealistic people, with the goal of helping people to live happier and more fulfilling lives. To that end, I've created this blog to spread a bit of cheer each day.
There's something about cards kids send out when something touches their heart.Today, I read an article on the Boston Globe's website about letters received by Boston's One Fund (a charity set up after the Boston Marathon bombings in April to raise money for victims and their families,) from children from all over the country. A letter that was described in the article that touched me the most was from a 9-year-old girl who wrote: "“I pray to everyone in Boston and especially the ones that are ingerd [sic] and have past [sic] away.” These letters reminded me of a letter that was sent by a little girl named Virginia to a newspaper asking whether Santa was real. (Her father told her that if that particular newspaper said something was true, then it was indeed true.) The letter and the reply that someone from the newspaper wrote back to her stating that Santa Claus was real and that he exists in people's love and generosity, became famous and the letter's reply is the most reprinted editorial in the English language.
Just as Virginia's letter was used to bring a bit more hope to Americans, I think that the letters to the One Fund bring hope not just to the people directly affected by the bombings but also to people in general. If our society can produce children who feel so strongly about an event that it influences them to send their well wishes and even to raise and send money to the victims and families, I think it shows that in the face of unspeakable evil, there is still a lot of good in the world and a lot of hope for the future. :)
As I couldn't resist posting it, below is a picture of another letter sent by a kid to the One Fund.
I always liked Shakespeare, I may not always understand the language of his plays but I still think the language sounds beautiful and I also like how the plays are so translatable that they can be adapted to any time period and still be relevant/interesting to modern audiences. Last night I was able to get a group of friends together to go and see the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company perform Two Gentlemen of Verona on Boston Common. What I felt was really cool about the performance was that it included references to Boston sports teams and a live band and band music from the 1940s and 50s. I felt the musical addition was rather clever as I like songs from the 1950s. The band made the performance seem like a cross between Shakespeare and a 1950s musical, which I thought was a lot of fun.
The performance also involved an actual live corgi dog-that animal alone stole the show for me. At one point the dog barked as if on cue at a very appropriate moment and surprised the actors as much as the audience, I suppose the dog hadn't done that before. Spontaneous things like that seem to make such performances more interesting. The only other outdoor Shakespeare performance I've been to was to go and see Hamlet with my family. There's a storm scene in Hamlet and just at that particular scene the skies opened and it started raining. Not torrential rain, (thank goodness) but enough to get my brother to start whispering repeatedly and energetically to my parents that he wished my dad had taken him to see a football match instead. Despite all that, I think my brother, my sister and I still did eventually appreciate the bit of culture our parents tried to instill in us. I think if my parents had not exposed me to plays like that, I might not appreciate them as much and have as nice a time as I did last night!
Although it's really short notice, there's still time to see Shakespeare on the Common. The last performance is Sunday July 28th at 2 and 8 pm. If you go, please give a standing ovation to the corgi!
What prompted this post is my mum's friend from France and her really nice taste in music. She sent me a CD from a group called Coeur de Pirate which I like very much and it got me thinking about how much I like musical groups from other countries in general. I like French and Spanish music best because I understand a bit of those languages so sometimes I can sort of follow along to what's being sung. Really though, I just like the way the music sounds. Even if I don't understand what they're singing about (for all I know these singers could be really singing about how much they love sandwiches or how they just went to the supermarket and really enjoyed that outing,) as long as they sound nice musically, I'd think the song was cool anyway. Plus, if I like a song enough it spurs me to try and figure out what it's really about. The song I liked best from the CD I mentioned, is called "Comme Des Enfants" and I like it because it sounds playful. The only word I understood out of the whole thing was "enfants" (children-I think!) but it's a start! (Also a signal I really need to learn more French!) In any case, listening to music in another language adds a bit of culture and spice to my life which is another reason to like it! If you'd like to listen to the song, see below. I've also included a song in Spanish that I like very much as well. It is called Al Otro Lado del Rio from the movie "The Motorcycle Diaries." As far as I can tell it's about rowing down a river and seeing a light on the other side of the river. It's a nice image! (Comme Des Enfants)
I went with a friend to a celebration of the 23rd anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), in Boston today and loved it! (The ADA is a civil rights law that mandates, among other things, that people with disabilities have equal access to buildings, jobs, and services. It also prevents discrimination against these individuals.) There was music and food, speeches by Boston's Mayor Menino and other dignitaries and even a flash mob. What I especially liked about the event was the t-shirts that were given out to everyone who attended. (After all, one can never have too many t-shirts.) These particular shirts (as you see below) had Boston Strong on them with traditional disability symbols. The words on the shirt seemed symbolic to me in that everyone I know who has a disability shows strength to me in facing each day head on and refusing to let anything stop them. The fact that the ADA exists to aid these people in living full lives testifies to how people with disabilities have more of a voice and can be more active now than ever before. It is true that there is always more that could be done to help people with disabilities to live life to the fullest. However, the fact that people in high places are willing to support people with disabilities through passing legislation and that events are held to celebrate and recognize people with disabilities' capacity to live full and active lives, is inspiring. It is yet another sign that people in Boston and indeed throughout the country have a lot of strength and I think what's really admirable about that is that there are so many who are willing to use that strength to help people in general and people with disabilities in particular. It is with all that strength combined that I believe contributes to making society as strong as it can be.
So often it seems, characters from kids books/movies come out with some lovely things to say that can help brighten anyone's day. So if you feel the need to be cheered here are some quotes that might help:
“Life Will Never Be The Same Because There Had Never Been Anyone Like You…Ever in the World.”- From: “On the Night You Were Born,” by Nancy Tillman.
"Be generous with your smile and try not to frown. And you will see my children; your smile will never let you down!" From:
"The king of Rhyme," by Benny Bellamacina
“And when things start to happen, don’t worry. Don’t stew. Just go right along, you’ll start happening too!” From: "Oh the Places You'll Go," by Dr. Seuss
If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely! From: "Mathilda," by Roald Dahl
"You Are Braver Than You Believe stronger than you seem, smarter than you think, and loved more than you’ll ever know.” From: “Winnie-the-Pooh,” by A.A. Milne
"My friend, the same wind that blows one door shut, often blows another open." From: "A Single Shard," by Linda Sue Park
"Inside all of us is a wild thing." From: "Where the Wild Things Are," by Maurice Sendak
"Everyone has bad days. Even in Australia." From: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day," by Judith Viorst
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” From: "Horton Hears a Who," By Dr. Seuss
There are always scary things happening in the world. There are always wonderful things happening. And it’s up to you to decide how you’re going to approach the world…how you’re going to live in it, and what you’re going to do. From: "Countdown," by Deborah Wiles
I love the picture of this cloud formation that someone took in Iron Mountain Michigan. (Quick geography lesson: Iron Mountain is in Michigan's Upper Peninsula on Michigan's border with Wisconsin.) Even though scientifically speaking these particular clouds are called mammatus clouds that can bubble underneath a larger cloud and sometimes signal a bad storm is coming, I still can't help liking them. To me the clouds in the picture are like a bunch of party balloons-as if the sky itself is celebrating something even if a storm is coming. After all, what's a party without a little bit of a ruckus involved? It's kind of inspiring really, it shows there can be beauty in storms and finding that beauty helps me weather the storm!
Photo credit: Jeff Last-Twitter (#miwx pic.twitter.com/83lsFPlBtw.)
To read more about the clouds and the picture click here.
A prince was born today! Hooray! I don't really know why I'm so excited about it except that babies always manage to make me feel good inside. Maybe it's because I'm a girl but I really think that (at least based off of what I've seen from everyone I know) babies for the most part have a keen ability to make people smile. I'm the oldest of three and so I have some memories growing up when my sister and brother were really young. My sister had this walker toy that was basically a chair on wheels with a tray encircling it. When we'd put her in it, it would allow her to run everywhere even though she couldn't walk on her own yet. We'd play a sort of game where she'd chase me around and she could really move once she got started in that thing. I'd have to run so she wouldn't catch my feet in the wheels of the chair. It probably sounds crazy but it was fun.
The thing I remember most about when my brother was a baby was his obsession with tractors I think one of his first words actually was "tractor" -maybe it was because we grew up in a farming community so there were a lot of tractors around at any given time. Every time he'd see one I used to think it was really sweet when he'd point at it emphatically and shout "TRACTOR" like he was the first person to discover the machine for the masses. Although he grew out of that phase quite quickly and has no plans to be a farmer, he still likes cars and things that go vroom in general.
I know the newborn prince won't grow up on a farm and although he might get one of those walker chairs to chase his parents around the palace, I just hope he has as much fun as we did!
