What Is Summer?

The mention of summer is enough to stir up a distinct picture in people's minds, but those pictures often differ!  In the following stories, Marlene, 72, and Gerry, 69, share the images that summer conjures in their minds.

The Essence of Summer - Gerry, 69

Gerry, 69

Blue everywhere—my favorite color.  Blue ocean, blue sky with puffy white clouds, days that make you feel like you haven’t got a care in the world.  This is what summer does for me!

The sound of the waves hitting the beach, the feel of the warm sand between my toes, leisurely walking at the water’s edge.  I love finding shells.  Their uniqueness, no two alike, reminds me of the people of our earth.  What a great way to spend the time we have for vacation.  It refreshes and renews my spirit.

Keeping the Kids Occupied - Marlene, 72

With the school year finished, I needed a plan to keep my grade school daughters occupied.  At the time, we had a family membership for the Pittsburgh Zoo (only $10 a year).  Every week, we would tour a different part of the zoo followed by a picnic.  Also, once a week, we would go to the Carnegie Library (free) for story time or a wonderful kids movie, followed by a picnic on the grounds.  Once a week they volunteered with me as I did the shopping for Meals on Wheels and helped me while I was a Girl Scout leader.  It was a nice breather when school resumed in the fall!

Meeting the Ocean - Adele, 68

I didn’t go to the beach as a child, but when I finally did, I just loved it—all the sand, the smells, the ocean, everything.  When I had children, two sons, I couldn’t wait to take them so they would love it as much as I did.  They were three- and four-years-old for this momentous visit.  We ran down to the water.  Then the sand shifted, and Dennis met the ocean headfirst!  I scooped him up while trying not to laugh.  Dennis said, “Again?”

The Artists' Beach Vacation to Cape May - Dot, 70

My favorite summer memory is of an annual art trip to Cape May, New Jersey.  The same group of people who paint in watercolor met there every year the week after the 4^th of July.  Our leader was a gifted artist, Marge Chavooshion, who is a member of the American Watercolor Society, National Watercolor Society, New Jersey Watercolor Society, and is published in many magazines for artists.  

The City of Cape May has many wonderful architectural and ocean dreamscapes to interpret in one’s sketchbook or watercolor block of paper.  The houses are dollhouse like and come in a variety of pastel colors and are complete with gingerbread detail.

The ocean was beautiful, restful, and refreshing after that day of sitting in rather uncomfortable beach chairs, painting in the hot sun.  We loved having the beautiful blue skies and sunshine to enjoy as well.

The old Chaffont Hotel hosted our group and put up with our using their toilet paper, water, and towels.  They do not have TVs, telephones, or air conditioning.  It is nice not having these luxuries or interruptions.

The annual vacations have come to an end as Marge is now in a nursing home in New York City to be near her children.

Prompt 7: Thanksgiving

Preschool children:  

Thanksgiving:  Print this picture for your child to color and discuss with you.  One sentence lets you record your child’s thoughts at this age and has a line for you to share your own thoughts with your child.

School agers: 

What are you thankful for?  Print this page and use it to describe what you are thankful for and why.

Teens/Adults:

Essay prompt: Epicurus believed, “Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.” Others maintain that contentment leads to laziness, that one needs a certain level of discomfort to keep moving forward and learning new things.  Is contentment a desirable state?  Why or why not?

Poetry prompt:  During Thanksgiving, we often meet with family and ponder our blessings, blessings which are repeated over generations in a surprising variety of ways.  Write about a blessing you have in the form of a triolet.

Lifestory prompt:  Write about an experience you are grateful for.  Tell the story of how you came to realize it was a blessing.

If you would like (and if it is okay with your parent or guardian), you can sign a submission form and return the form and your writing to the library.  Stories will be posted together on this blog beginning November 29^th.  The stories will be publishes as a book in the spring of 2014.

Prompt 6: A Taste of Home

Preschool children:  

Favorite Food:  Print this picture for your child to color and discuss with you.  One sentence lets you record your child’s thoughts at this age and has a line for you to share your own thoughts with your child.

School agers: 

What food do you make together as a family?  Print this page and tell us about it.

Teens/Adults:

Essay prompt:  Just as every dish has a distinct flavor, a unique taste that identifies the ingredient, so also every work has a distinctive style unique to its creator.  What flavor do you add to your work?  How can we tell it is your own?

Poetry prompt:  We often forget how words feel in our mouths; some are as delicious as our favorite snacks.  Write a poem that plays with the feelings of the words.  Feel free to use assonance, alliteration, consonance, and other sound devices.

Lifestory prompt: Tastes often bring us back to a certain place at a certain time.  What is a taste that you always associate with a particular part of your past?

If you would like (and if it is okay with your parent or guardian), you can sign a submission form and return the form and your writing to the library.  Stories will be posted together on this blog beginning November 29^th.  The stories will be publishes as a book in the spring of 2014.

Prompt 5: Choice

Preschool children:  

I can pick!:  Print this picture for your child to color and discuss with you.  One sentence lets you record your child’s thoughts at this age and has a line for you to share your own thoughts with your child.

School agers: 

What is a story that meant something special to you?  Print this page and use it to write about a choice.

Teens/Adults:

Essay prompt: "In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing." – Theodore Roosevelt

Oftentimes we do not have all the facts to a situation and do not know what the right answer is.  In cases like these, is it still better to do something than to do nothing?  Discuss.

Poetry prompt: One method poets use to present difference is juxtaposition, or the placing of two different objects or actions next to one another for the purpose of comparison or contrast.  Write a poem in which you juxtapose two unlike objects.  You can achieve this juxtaposition by literally bringing up both objects or by using a form that is commonly thought of in one manner to discuss something opposite, i.e., write a sonnet about war instead of love, write a haiku about the city rather than nature, write a limerick on something serious instead of farcical, write an elegy on a birth instead of a death, etc.

Lifestory prompt:  Write about a choice you made that changed the course of your life. OR Write about an election day or political activity meant something deeply to you.  Show us why you cared so much.

If you would like (and if it is okay with your parent or guardian), you can sign a submission form and return the form and your writing to the library.  Stories will be posted together on this blog beginning November 29^th.  The stories will be publishes as a book in the spring of 2014.