oh the places you'll go

you can probably tell from the style of my blog that i love cartoons and comics....i always have - it goes all the way back to sitting with my dad while he would read the paper and hand me the comics page....i looked forward to the sunday paper just for the color comics!!!  as i grew up, my favorites changed, but clearly calvin and hobbes led the way for a long time.....my sister and i always loved that comic strip - and the last one ever published is framed and hanging in josh's room....

as an english major and a fan of words, i always enjoyed how the best messages were often conveyed in such a SIMPLE format.....i still love political cartoons today, for much the same reason - while it takes a great deal of talent to write eloquently at length, it also takes a real gift to get your point across in a phrase or two....a lot of poets and authors and writers have made an impression on me over the years - i have a zillion favorites because i love to read....but there are simple works that resonate with me.....like shel silverstein's "a light in the attic" and dr.seuss' "oh, the places you'll go"

“All The Woulda-Coulda-Shouldas
Layin' In The Sun,
Talkin' 'Bout The Things
They Woulda-Coulda-Shoulda Done...
But All Those Woulda-Coulda-Shouldas
All Ran Away And Hid
From One Little Did.”
― Shel Silverstein

 

yes, they are simple but they get their point across......i can still remember my 5th grade teacher reading us one poem a day from a light in the attic.....it was a great way to get us interested in poetry, but also in REFLECTION.....its never too soon to reinforce some positive thoughts.....and in my opinion dr. seuss was the master of positive energy....he created such a crazy, yet accessible world - where you could do or say anything and it was ok ....actually it was better than ok - it was fantastic!!

 

Words - so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become in the hands of one who knows how to combine them.  ~Nathaniel Hawthorne

its funny because so many of our childrens books are full of these amazingly positive messages - that as adults and teenagers we look BACK on for inspiration....i think that's amazing!!  so today, on DR SEUSS' birthday, i thought i would just say how glad i am his legacy is still around, that his messages are still going strong.....words are a powerful thing, and when used for GOOD, can create a lasting joy for those who read them :)

 

 

“Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.”

“Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.”

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, Nothing is going to get better. It's not.”

 “I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind.

But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!”

“If things start happening, don't worry, don't stew, just go right along and you'll start happening too.”

“You'll get mixed up, of course, as you already know. You'll get mixed up with many strange birds as you go. So be sure when you step. Step with care and great tact and remember that Life's a Great Balancing Act. Just never forget to be dexterous and deft. And never mix up your right foot with your left.”

all of life's lessons - in 10 sentences or less :)

from the master himself with all his finesse

the things that he most wants us to know

to be who you are, and to let it all show

to look for the joy in each of your days

and to never forget to play on the way

to remember for all that the sky is the limit

because of the amazing gifts we are given :) dqb