I took the kids to the library this morning, which consists of Quinn playing and looking at Brownie and Pearl books, Kieran rolling around on the floor, and me picking out books to bring home. As we’re walking out the door after having checked our books out, Quinny spotted a Scooby Doo book and so we went through the check out line again. Right next to Scooby Doo was a beautiful book caught my eye, so I tacked that one on as well. I’m sharing it because it was so beautiful. It reads like a poem. The illustrations are wonderful, though, so I encourage you to get your eyes on it. In fact, there are a few pages which consist only of illustrations. It’s about a snowfall in the night.
Before Morning by Joyce Sidman
“In the deep woolen dark,
As we slumber unknowing,
Let the sky fill with flurry and flight.
Let the air turn to feathers,
The Earth turn to sugar,
And all that is heavy turn light.
Let quick things be swaddled,
Let urgent plans flounder,
Let pathways be hidden from sight.
Please- just this once-
Change the world before morning:
Make it slow,
And delightful...
And white.”
“On Wishes and Invocations
How powerful are words? Can they make things happen? Stop them from happening? Can they protect us? Comfort us? Enchant us? This book is written in the form of an invocation- a poem that invites something to happen, often asking for help or support. Humans have been using invocations for thousands of years, to soothe the body and strengthen the soul. Do they work? Maybe. Maybe speaking something out loud is the first step in making it happen.
What is it you wish for? Find the best words for that wish and speak them aloud. Maybe in the deep woolen dark, snowflakes will begin to fall...”
