Showing posts with label Shel Silverstein. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shel Silverstein. Show all posts

Thursday, 24 May 2012

Heart-felt thanks

Our gift with the note

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about favourite childhood books. You can read the post here. My favourite childhood story was The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein.

Anyway, I blogged about it – put it out into the blogosphere and found out other people’s favourite childhood stories.

Tiki Tiki Tembo, The Magic Faraway Tree, Snugglepot & Cuddlepie and Dr Doolittle all featured as people’s favourites. And someone out there shared the same favourite as me: The Giving Tree.

Fast-forward two weeks and I’m arriving home from picking up The Polynesian Princess from school. Hefting all the bags out of the boot, I check the mail and there’s a package addressed to all of us. Me, the Princess and the Little Warrior. Curious, I schlep all our gear into the house, unceremoniously dump it on the floor and open the package. And inside, is a copy of The Giving Tree accompanied with a note:

“When I discovered that our favourite childhood books were one and the same, but you didn’t have a copy, I thought “That just won’t do”.

The note went on to wish us much enjoyment out of reading this book. It was signed from a friend of mine. A friend I made less than a year ago, in one night under circumstances that can only be described as “happenstance”.

I can’t thank-you enough for the thoughtfulness and consideration of your gift. It brought tears to my eyes and Polynesian Princess begged me to read this story to her twice tonight. She thought it was the most beautiful story she’s ever heard.

So there you go – you and I will both pass this gorgeous story on to our children.

Hand on my heart. Thank-you.

xx

Wednesday, 9 May 2012

Childhood Book...




This morning on the news I read that Maurice Sendak, author of Where the Wild Things Are had died.  My first exposure to this 1963 classic was when I had children and I fell in love with it immediately.  It’s no wonder it was loved by all – it was written for children and adults alike without  patronising either set.

I had many, many books throughout my childhood and a few of them have been passed down to the Polynesian Princess.  I dare say that the Little Warrior won’t be getting his hands on these as she seems to be deeply attached to these books.

The one childhood book that I absolutely adored was The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein.  Have you read it?  It’s just the most beautiful story about a friendship beween a boy and a tree.  I never forgot the lessons this book taught me about love and friendship.  Sadly, I don’t have my copy anymore and one day I will buy one for the Polynesian Princess and Little Warrior.  And I hope they too will love the book as much as I did.

What was your favourite childhood book?  Do you still have it?