Snow Gifts

Garden Friends December 2013

"He brewed his tea in a blue china pot, poured it into a chipped white cup with forget-me-nots on the handle, and dropped in a dollop of honey and cream. He sat by the window, cup in hand, watching the first snow fall. 'I am,' he sighed deeply, 'contented as a clam. I am a most happy man.' --Ethel Pochocki, Wildflower Tea, 1993

Snow arrived today (estimates of up to 7 inches!), bringing with it a sleigh filled with gifts:

1. An excuse for another cup of favorite tea. Savor.
2. A good book to read--particularly next to a window with a view of the wonder. Snuggle.
3. A slower pace. Sigh and Smile.
4. Beauty and freshness, a hush and a stillness. Serenity.

About Wildflower Tea (Grades 1-4) from School Library Journal: "'One sunny Monday in May, an old man went out with a basket in one hand and a walking stick in the other...He stooped to caress a white stone polished smooth by the water and there, by the toe of his shoe, he spied some violets their faces turned up to his.' So begins a lyrical, seven-month record of a nature lover's scavenging. In November, the bounty he has reaped all summer provides his wildflower tea." 

Who was Ethel Pochocki? 
From Goodreads: "Ethel Frances Pochocki (1925-2010) was a children's book author living in Brooks, Maine. She developed a passion for books and writing working at the New York City Public Library. While raising eight children, she turned to writing in the early morning hours. Her writing career began when she won an essay writing contest about her experience taking in inner city kids with the Fresh Air Project in New York City." 

From About the Author, Amazon: "Ethel Pochocki described herself as 'an ordinary person' who happened to 'make soup and raise kids and write stories.' Both kitchencraft and the experience of raising children--eight of them--contributed to a whimsical, down-to-earth and understanding touch...she concocted adventures with the ordinary but vivid ingredients of life--'books, cats, music, frogs, hollyhocks.'"

Ethel sounds like someone I could relate to--"making soup, raising kids, and writing stories." Though I'd never heard of her before, I'm thinking about checking out her books now.

But maybe not until the snow stops falling.

How do you enjoy a snow day?

Hope you're able to enjoy it in safety. Have a super weekend.

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