APRIL 2021
Spring is upon us, with the joys of emerging flowers, longer days, increasingly warm sunshine, and since we live in New England – mud.
It is a time of rebirth and an opportunity to take pleasure in all the beautiful sights around us. There is increased hope for relief from the COVID virus that has overshadowed our days. There is also a growing awareness that we have frequently overlooked the people and things that are truly most important in our lives. We have been given a chance to see that our families, our friends, and the small everyday interactions we have with those around us are truly what brings meaning to our lives. So let us move forward with a resolution to keep those “most important things” front and center in our lives.
Let’s live with
Kindness
Wonder
Empathy
Happiness
Gentle words
Acceptance
Humor
It is always a good day to see the world through the eyes of a child.
MARCH 2021
March is National Women’s History Month and a time to take note of the extraordinary and sometimes unknown roles that women have played throughout history. We have the opportunity to look at both the large and small differences women add to all our lives, every day.
We have a responsibility to reinforce to all our children that women are equal to men and to introduce them to women who have made contributions to our world. They may have worked to improve workers’ rights and safety – Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909, perhaps they opened up education to those denied – I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up for Freedom and Changed the World, Beatrice’s Goat, Temple Grandin or found paths to freedom – Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle to Freedom, Unspoken: A Story from the Underground Railroad. They may have played a sport or found expression through dance – Dirt on their Skirts: The Story of the Young Women Who Won the World Championship, A Dance like Starlight: One Ballerina’s Dream, Bunheads. They might have been notable in science – The Doctor with an Eye for Eyes: the Story of Dr. Patricia Bath, Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World, Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race, A Computer Named Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Helped Put America on the Moon. We can read short synopses of outstanding female contributors in Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls: 100 Tales of Extraordinary Women (Volumes 1 & 2), or Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls:100 Immigrant Women Who Changed the World, and Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History.
There are many books in the library that introduce us to famous women and also many that show us the heroism of fictional women. Rosie Revere, Iggy Peck, Ada Twist and Sofia Valdez teach us that women can become engineers, architects, scientists or presidents. It is a good month for inspiring an appreciation for the women in our lives. Reading books to our children that showcase the many and varied roles that women play in both our past and present will help guarantee equal footing for women in their future.
