March break
Day One
The tiny book is here, inspired by the poem The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear
I
The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea-green boat,
They took some honey, and plenty of money,
Wrapped up in a five-pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above,
And sang to a small guitar,
“O lovely Pussy! O Pussy, my love,
What a beautiful Pussy you are,
You are,
You are!
What a beautiful Pussy you are!”
II
Pussy said to the Owl, “You elegant fowl!
How charmingly sweet you sing!
O let us be married! too long we have tarried:
But what shall we do for a ring?”
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the Bong-Tree grows
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood
With a ring at the end of his nose,
His nose,
His nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.
III
“Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring?” Said the Piggy, “I will.”
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
They danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.
Out of curiosity. Do you know this poem? And if so…did you memorize it?
Both Heather and I wrote on this prompt, and two different takes we had (we had). Two different takes, we had.
📚📚📚
#73
Where Did They Get That Pea Green Boat?
My tiny book
And the tiny book that Heather wrote. Both of us agree that writing a tiny book based on this poem wasn’t an easy feat.
But I love Heather’s take, and her illustrations, and that gorgeous boat. And the inclusion of our town. 🥰
💖💖💖
I’m in the bath and it’s nearly 10:30pm.
This morning I got up at a reasonable time, to make breakfast and grab a cup of tea before I attended an online gathering put together by SB Rawz and their mother. It was part of a series called Deathy Dislogues, and today’s was about the act of aging.
It was such a brilliant way to start the day, and I highly recommend checking out SB's Chipped Plaster. I am inspired and calmed by so many wondrous writers on Substack, and I feel grateful to have come across SB’s work around the time I started writing two years ago.
The fact that I’ve made, and continue to make genuine connections and friendships here makes it a place I look forward to visiting daily.
🌸🌸🌸
Today was the first day of March Break, which means that I have our teenagers for a week.
They are excited to be on a break from school. We began with sushi, ramen and bubble tea.
My youngest wants to finish watching season 3 of Master Chef, and go on some day trips. My eldest wants to watch the entire season of One Piece, the second season, which just dropped on the 10th of March. We watched the first season together the month we moved to Nova Scotia…two and a half years ago.
Both of these require my whole focus and sitting on the couch exclaiming over plot lines and characters with my kids. We are not quiet tv watchers. Which is not my partner’s thing. So we try to do it when they are otherwise occupied.
We also (accidentally) had to go on a quest. My eldest forgot his Apple Pencil charger, and he is an avid artist. He draws every day. So this was an important quest, and gratefully after three locations we were able to find the adapter we needed.
While we were away adventuring, my younger kiddo was at home drawing.
I came home to the beginning of a story I love terribly. Something he wrote when he was 8, a cast of characters that got us through the pandemic. He wrote THIRTEEN books based on his Sheep Birds concept. The first two books are my favourite books in the world…and I lost the original.
When we got home my kid told me to look on the table.
The cliffhanger is below
(They are literally on a cliff)
I love this weird world he has created. And the fact that he dedicated it to me…I feel spectacularly grateful that these are the two kids I get to grow and change with.
These two are the reason my partner and I are selling our house and moving to the city. I don’t want to miss any more of their growing up.
I’m taking most of this week off so I can spend it with them. With the exception of running Creative Club on Thursday so that I can show my kids what I do when they aren’t here.
I hope your Saturday (or Sunday) ((or whatever day it is when you read this)) is beautiful.
Heart,
Wake
Me, today, 46 and 8 months old.
Yes! I too learnt that poem by memory when young. - And we learnt it too, as a song, which makes it easier to remember.
~~~~
Where Did They Get That Pea-Green boat?
The boat
Was remote.
It existed and lasted
On a wild shore blasted
By winds everlasting.
Her owner, a sailor,
Was older and paler
Than in times of net-casting.
The sailor found shelter
He sanded and dealt her
A pea-greenish paint hue.
They both wanted comp'ny
To sail the high sea
So owl and cat came too.
~~~~
I am 47 and 9 months old today. About this time every decade (well, since 27), I start champing at the bit for the milestone ahead. 30 felt like catching up to how I felt. As a kid, I thought 40 would be a magical time of calmness within myself, that I'd have a knowingness about life and so I was excited to see what it was actually like (I was both right and wrong in my childhood prediction). And 50? Dunno, except I long ago decided I would get knuckle tattoos for my 50th because the very idea makes me giggle. I've gone through iterations of funny and punny possibilities though these days, I'm considering LOVE LOVE in contrast to the classic LOVE HATE knuckles. I guess I'll find out in two years and three months!
Having you join Deathy Dialogues was magical - thank you, friend! Wishing you and your kiddos the continued adventure of your time together!