Halloween 3

 This book by Jenny Nimmo is an all-time favorite with kids at schools - very scary story from Scotland, with a great redemptive ending that beautifully illustrates the power of grace and goodness over the forces of evil!  Great for grades 5 and up.

On this upcoming Hallowed night then, I hope you may have a good ghost story or two to read to your little ones - to celebrate the POWER of GOOD over EVIL.

The next day- the glorious feast of All Saints (one of my favorite holy days), I know that I will say a special prayer to all those “big” saints like Patrick and Joseph, Teresa and Bridget who filled this world with their goodness and grace and light.  

And I will also pray also to all those “little” saints – all those holy men and women who have touched my life with their particular goodness, grace, and light – my mum and my dad, all my dear Irish aunties and uncles, and even those wonderful writers, like C.S. Lewis, Madeleine L’Engle, and Thomas Merton, whose words continue to feed and nourish me.

To miss this opportunity of spreading the Gospel – the Good News that we are indeed people of the Light and that we know without a shadow of a doubt that goodness and grace will always trump the forces of evil and darkness, would indeed make this a very “hollow” festival!  So, light the lanterns, tell the spooky tales, don the wizards’ robes and witches’ hats, and have a 

Happy HALLOW  - EEN!

School Visit to Carson Elementary

 A big thanks to the 3rd graders at Carson Elementary for their warm welcome!  We had a wonderful time on our JOURNEY WITH STORY.

Here am I a explaining how a story is like a journey because it involves movement - not of one's body, but of one's heart.  And of course, these smart students immediately spotted that  the word EMOTION means a MOVEMENT of your HEART!

What great LISTENERS these students were!  They defined "RAPT"

One of my favorite questions came from a little boy who asked, "What is your favorite part of America?  I had been explaining how The Giant King evolved in part from my own experience of moving from another country to America and at first, feeling as if I did not belong.   And so, I think this little fellow was wanting to make sure that I felt as if I "belonged" now - hence his question.  However, I told him that his question was such a good one that I could not answer it on the spot and it deserved a lot more time to ponder......so I am still pondering it!

But I do know that always, always, always, when I make a school visit, it is definitely my most favorite part of my week!

Thank you Carson Elementary!

Halloween 2

Every Halloween, it seems, I come across some students or parents who are unaware of the roots of this holiday, and so here again are my posts from last Halloween for those who may have missed it.



I love reading scary, spooky Halloween stories to children at this time of year, but I am surprised at the number of students who are completely unaware of the roots of this holiday, and even of the derivation of the word itself.  At a recent school visit, in answer to my question about the meaning of hallow, the only child who raised his hand to answer, said, “empty,” obviously confusing it with hollow.  I suppose that is not at all surprising, given the number of people in the media who  pronounce it “Holloween.”

Ever since I came to America, I find that some teachers and parents are somewhat wary of focusing, or even of acknowledging the ghoulish aspects of this holiday, while some go so far as to maintain that it is at odds with the Christian faith.

However, I think it provides a wonderful opportunity to talk to children about what it really means to say that you are a Christian, a follower of Christ, and a Gospel sower.   Here is what I tell the children before I launch into my stack of spooky stories.

Halloween means Holy Evening from the old English- Hallow – Holy, and een – contraction of eve or evening.   Of course, as most people know (or at least I think they do), this holiday has its roots in the ancient Celtic/Druid/ belief that this was the time of year when evil spirits roamed the earth.

In order to keep the dark forces at bay, people dressed up in costumes to “fool” the wandering souls.  With the advent of Christianity, the Celts still retained many of their ancient rituals (jack o lantern to ward off the evil spirits, dressing up in costumes and going from house to house – guising) and simply blended them into their new found Christian practices – going to Mass to celebrate the lives of the Saints and offering up special prayers for the dead.


Incidentally, the reason St. Patrick was so successful at bringing Christianity to Ireland, was that the Celtic people were already completely attuned to the idea of “other worlds” – Heaven and Hell, because they already believed in the “little people,” and they already knew that often times that which you cannot see is actually more real than what you can see.

Halloween 1

Child of Faerie, Child of Earth, written by Jane Yolen and Illustrated by Jane Dyer

This month's read aloud on my storytelling site is a Halloween story that is near and dear to my heart.


From a storyteller’s perspective  - "Child of Faerie, Child of Earth,"  is an exquisite example of the ideal story – the perfect marriage of picture, text, and that circular quality that we Celts love ( when St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland, he acknowledged the Celtic love of the circle and so placed it over the cross, and thus we have the CELTIC CROSS) and so the end of this story circles back to the beginning with an admonition:

“Be brave, be bold, be unafraid and join that faerie ring!”



Notice the word RING - another word for circle.

How's that for a story that ENCOURAGES your child?  

The French word for courage is LA  COEUR. 

So when we read GOOD stories to our little ones, 

we are feeding their hearts - making them bigger and better and 

kinder!

And of course, it is a story about  faeries – and you cannot be Irish and not love faeries!

Finally, the story's theme addresses that age old human dilemma of yearning for something which you can never have -in this case, neither the faerie child not the human child can live in each other's land.  As someone who married a "foreigner," and ended up leaving my homeland to go and live in "another land," I know that dilemma full well.

So, it is a story that reminds me of my own human frailty, but at the same time feeds my heart with its beauty and truth and love.  

A GOOD way to celebrate this upcoming HOLY EVENING of HALLOWEEN!

Journeys 3

"It's not where you go, it's who you travel with."

There is a lovely old Irish tale of a King who decides which of his two sons is worthy of inheriting his crown, by setting them a task.  

And the task?  

Make a long road short!

How can one do such a thing?

By....

 telling a story, of course. 

 And so, the son who is able to spin a tale as they walk along the road together wins the crown.

I even wrote my own version of this old tale some years ago, which was published in Cricket magazine - Maggie, the Farmer's Daughter."

How I love the notion, that on this journey of life, it is the companions who "walk" with us, who can lighten our load, make the journey seem shorter, and help us discover hidden joys along the way - much like Isaac and Abulabaz in this month's read aloud.

Journeys 2

"Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost."

In our "purpose driven" culture, it is sometimes hard to remember, as Tolkein's words tell us, that wandering can often be the best part of any journey.  Interesting too, if we think of our life as a journey, that the word wander and wonder are only a letter of a difference!   What better way to boost our little ones sense of wonder than to immerse them in the beauty of a great story, or.....to let them wander a little when we go for a walk without worrying about where we are going or when we will get there.

Of course, speaking as someone who is extremely geographically challenged, and who has ended up living in a land where I am surrounded by people who have been born with a compass in their mouths, it is really no surprise that the notion of WANDERING resonates so deeply with me!

Journeys - 1

This month's read aloud is called, THE TWO TRAVELERS by Christopher Manson.  It is the delightful tale of two unlikely travel companions from two very different countries and backgrounds, who have to make a long journey together.  In the course of their journey, they make discoveries about themselves and about the world - which is of course, what all good journeys help us do.

I like to tell children that stories too are like journeys, and just as most journeys will involve us circling back to where we began - HOME, so too good stories will often circle back to where they began, except that now our main character will have undergone some inner change or growth.  

 The Celtic people revered the circle - they told their stories in a circle, they worshiped the sun and the moon, and when St. Patrick brought Christianity to them, he honored their sacred circle by putting it around the cross - and so today we have the lovely CELTIC CROSS.

"We shall not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time." 

T. S. Eliot