Love this retro moment! Keep its beautiful lyricism close to your heart as you make your way through the day.
Have a good week!
♥ My post about "Sweet Baby James," my all-time favorite JT comfort song, is here.
f is for fall 2010
friday feast: wish i had a river i could skate away on
Photo of Joni Mitchell by Joel Bernstein (1976)
Happy December and Happy Holidays!
‘Tis the season of joy, miracles, and giving, warm gatherings with family and friends, the lighting of candles.
In the coming days, bells will be ringing, we’ll raise our voices in song, and around every corner, fa la la and ho ho ho. And yet I feel sorry for December. Not because it’s the last month of the year, having waited patiently 344 days for its chance to shine. Not because its days are noticeably shorter, darker, and colder. No, I feel sorry for December because so much rests on it.
It’s a month crammed with hectic activity, frantic over-spending, zealous over-eating. Suddenly we run around hither and yon, determined to make sure every single person we’ve ever known or loved is somehow acknowledged. We are pressured to socialize whether we want to or not, tip back that eggnog (glug glug), and by jingle by gum, be HAPPY.
Don’t misunderstand. December doesn’t really mind being Happy. It doesn’t mind all the glitter and sparkle and lit-up faces of kids opening presents on Christmas morning. It certainly doesn’t mind all the cookies, candy canes, or gingerbread men. No, December minds the remembering — of childhood Christmases never to be relived, the missing — of loved ones living far away, deployed overseas, or no longer with us, and the knowing — that many are having hard times and will have a lean holiday, if at all.
Being the last month of the year, everything falls to December. Everything that could have, should have happened the past 11 months, but didn’t. Missed chances, dashed hopes, youthful dreams losing more luster with each passing second. The across-the-board wake-up call when high expectations must meet reality is a lot for a single month to bear.
And yet the celebrations will continue, and we will go on, finding a singular beauty in the sadness, sporting badges of honor for having survived this long. We can skate away, if we like, escape to a place of emotional safety, selective remembering and quiet joy.
Joni Mitchell’s “River” (here covered by Sarah McLachlan) has become a favorite non-traditional “Christmas song” for many people. Perhaps it is because unlike the traditional carols, this song about a romantic breakup addresses some of our reckonings and deep-seated longings. How much we yearn to see the light in our lives. How much it has hurt us trying to find it. How much we hope it will burn bright enough to get us through December.
♥ Special thanks to Cynthia Lord, who posted this video earlier this week.
♥ You can find Joni’s original version of “River”, which was included on her landmark album, Blue (1971), along with the complete lyrics here.
♥ Check out this interesting article about “River,” which includes some backstory and quotes from James Taylor, who was romantically involved with Joni in the early 70’s.
♥ Related post: Two of Joni’s songs with paintings to go with them.
♥ Today’s Poetry Friday Roundup is being hosted by the lovely Tricia of The Miss Rumphius Effect. Skate on over, and enjoy all the poems. Have a good December, and be gentle with those who sing “Jingle Bells” in a minor key.
Copyright © 2010 Jama Rattigan of jama rattigan’s alphabet soup. All rights reserved.
time to pray picture book giveaway!
Maha with Time to Pray and her first book, The White Nights of Ramadan.
Recently I attended a booksigning at my local Barnes & Noble for Maha Addasi’s new picture book, Time to Pray (Boyds Mills Press, 2010).
You may remember that I featured it in a special Soup of the Day post this past summer. This is a lovely story about Yasmin, who learns how to pray while visiting her grandmother in the Middle East. It’s beautifully illustrated with Ned Gannon’s oil paintings, which showcase the intricate geometric patterns and earth tones of Arab architecture.
No booksigning is complete without a little chocolate!
I picked up an extra copy and had Maha sign it for one lucky alphabet soup reader! Time to Pray would make a wonderful holiday gift or a welcome donation to any school library. High quality picture books about Arab/Islamic culture are rare and in high demand by educators. Time to Pray is a wonderful introduction to Salah, the five times a day worship practiced by Muslims, and will help satisfy the curiosity of American children. The bond between Yasmin and her grandmother makes for a warm, satisfying story that’s not in the least bit didactic, and it resonates on a universal level.
For a chance to win a signed copy of Time to Pray, simply leave a comment here no later than midnight (EST), Sunday, December 12th. You can also enter by emailing me: readermail (at) jamakimrattigan (dot) com, with "Time to Pray Giveaway" in the subject line. Extra entries for tweeting, blogging, or Facebooking (just let me know in the comments). Open to U.S. residents only.
"Familiarizing Islamic prayer through realistic fiction makes this a fine choice for most collections." ~ School Library Journal.
"A girl’s visit to her grandmother in an unnamed Middle Eastern town introduces her to her spiritual heritage in this visually arresting tale, which subtly addresses the challenges and importance of passing on faith traditions from one generation to the next." Publishers Weekly
♥ Click here to read my Soup of the Day review, which includes spreads from the book.
♥ This post is brought to you by Fajr, the first, pre-dawn prayer of the day.
Copyright © 2010 Jama Rattigan of jama rattigan’s alphabet soup. All rights reserved.
stand behind military kids!
Last week I heard about a cool project via Sara Lewis Holmes: the "Stand Behind Military Kids Wall of Thanks" at the National Military Family Association website.
People from all over the country are submitting photos to show their support and say "thank you" to all the military kids who serve their country by saying goodbye, stepping up at home, writing letters, and giving up one of their parents for months at a time.
Of course, when the Rattigan teddies heard about this, they insisted on participating. We’d like to encourage everyone to upload a photo between now and December 31st. It’s very easy to do: just go to militaryfamily.org, download the PDF of the sign, fill in your name or organization, take the photo and then email it to the address provided. Your photo should be added to the slideshow within 24 hours.
We hope you’ll take a few minutes from your busy holiday schedule to show these kids how much you appreciate their service. Click here for all the details and to see the slideshow of photos already submitted. Please Facebook, blog, and/or Tweet this info so we can build a huge Wall of Thanks!
♥ Check out Sara’s post, which includes photos of some of the authors and teachers at the recent NCTE Conference in Orlando!
♥ Sara also posted a comprehensive list of resources for Connecting with Kids from Military Families.
alphabet soup STANDS BEHIND MILITARY KIDS!!
Copyright © 2010 Jama Rattigan of jama rattigan’s alphabet soup. All rights reserved.
the gigantic mouth-waterin’, lip-smackin’ thanksgiving picture book feast, part two
Happy Thanksgiving and Welcome Back!
I trust you’ve had a little time to nap, watch a football game, or chat with family and friends since we last sat down for Part One of our Thanksgiving Feast.
I’ll let you in on a little secret: while turkey and all the trimmings is just fine and dandy — for me, Thanksgiving is really about the PIES. Oh, you’re not surprised? Hmmmm.
We’re having pumpkin and apple pie today, but before I devour taste those, I wanted to serve up several more delicious picture books representing some of the traditional foods enjoyed on this gastronomic holiday. We can never have too much turkey, or can we? And we musn’t leave out corn, so important when remembering the Pilgrims and Native Americans. And there’s always squash . . .
Jama's Alphabet Soup 