My Weekly Amble: February 10-15, 2025
Last week, I wrote kind of a summing up post. This week, I’ve simply copied my Substack ruminations. Do you have a preference? This was certainly faster, but less … contemplative of the week’s reading … tell me in the comments! I’ll probably do a mix based on how much time I have to pull it together …
Mondays are my busiest day as they set up the entire week: laundry, my VA work, grocery ordering, etc. So I did not get to my AOY0 reading until this evening while people are out at Robotics or doing their own homework.
I did do my reading tonight, though, so onward.
In the Treasury, I reviewed the memory rhymes section – rhymes to the rescue Untermeyer says. I am a bit at a loss at how several of the rhymes, I’m only familiar with the second half of. We’re losing something; it’s worth reading these things!
I read the first B’rer Rabbit and B’rer Fox tale in my anthology. Dialect has always been particularly difficult for me to read – the Scottish brogue of Ivanhoe and In Freedom’s Cause and Kidnapped were much better read by audiobook narrators. I am hopeful that I’ll be able to understand the rhythms here better as I read. I’m still not sure why B’rer Fox left the Rabbit home without dinner …
Wynken, Blynken, and Nod is just so sweet … the Eugene Field poem and the artistry of this picture book go together delightfully.
Finally, I read Benjamin Bunny which, after Peter Rabbit, is the Beatrix Potter Story I’m most familiar with. Poor Peter first had quite a time of it by himself and now, with his friend! But Old Mr. Benjamin Bunny hopefully straightened the boys out so they don’t end up in a pie.
Tuesday, I enjoyed revisiting the Poor Richard’s Almanac sayings that Untermeyer includes in his Treasury. Here are two:
Quarrels never could last long,
If on one side only lay the wrong.
and
Hide not your Talents, they for Use were made.
What’s a Sun-Dial in the shade!
The second one is of particular interest as I’m working on <a href=”poetryfoundation.org/po…”>Milton’s Sonnet 19</a>
When I consider how my light is spent,
Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,
And that one Talent which is death to hide …
Three weeks, three lines down. Not bad.
The next section is animal poems which he begins with three poems on horses that show their power, grandeur, and fragility. Bible passage from Job 39, Shakespeare from Henry V, and Robert Frost.
Uncle Remus told the story of the Tar-Baby and … it’s open-endedness reminds me of The Lady or the Tiger. He doesn’t tell you if Br’er Rabbit got away or got eaten.
My first read ever of Miss Rumphius was very sweet. I actually did have a Great-Aunt Alice. Who was a teacher. But she didn’t live by the sea and she didn’t spread lupine seeds to my knowledge. She was a nice, gentle lady.
And, finally, Beatrix Potter. The Tale of Two Bad Mice. As Miss Potter ends, were they really so bad? They paid reparations for their mischief. What a silly pair of mice. I’m glad the doll-house owners got a police officer, though.
I was in a bit of a hurry on Wednesday because I had extra kid-driving to do starting this morning and while waiting, I walked and pushed my way through the final book in the Wingfeather Saga. (Which I loved overall) And then had more kid-driving.
But! I did read in the Treasury and repeated yesterday’s horse poems. The first bit today was a few lines from the Rime of the Ancient Mariner. For my non-AO reading, I’ve been reading The Pilgrim of Tinker Creek and am in the chapter about intricacy and variety and what we can see – both micro and macro – and what we cannot. And then two four-animal poems, one from Milne. Did the goat go in the Lion’s Den? Is that why we didn’t really hear from him? And the snail was a surprise. The four foxes were sweet.
The Ox-Cart Man and Mrs Tiggy-Winkle were both a little toe-stepping with their focus on industry and bustle.
Uncle Remus told of his ticklish ‘possum and his manner of avoiding a fight.
Thursday morning’s AOY0 Readings:
During my Treasury review I remember that Untermeyer had included part of Proverbs 30 in his animal poetry. He was using the KJV which referred to “conies”, which today is more often translated as rock badger or even hyraxes. I think I’ve only heard of “coneys” as rabbits (or rabbit furs) in British literature, so it’s intriguing to me that it was used for a Rock Badger. A quick internet search suggests also a fish. This set of creatures makes some sense – but, more surprising, was the confusion between “spiders” and “lizards.” I’ll have to ask someone about that one. I think I didn’t notice yesterday because I wasn’t attending well (tsk tsk) and my mind simply read rock badger and lizard because that’s what the ESV says.
I did continue on with the Ballad of the Fox and A Night with a Wolf. Untermeyer noted Romulus and Remus and Mowgli as raised by wolves, but I think he missed Paris of Troy – or was that a bear?
Uncle Remus shared how Brer Rabbit escaped Brer Fox by trickery. Two days later, just wonder about that …
The Tale of Three Trees was beautifully done (almost a picture of Jesus if you avoid). It made me think that our desires often can be fulfilled, but not always as expected.
And The Late of Mr. Jeremy Fisher was fun. It made me think of Frog and Toad and Mr. Toad of Toad Hall. The best laid plans of frogs foiled by a fish meant no minnows but grasshoppers for dinner.
20 minutes was even too much on Friday.
In AOY0 on Saturday, I enjoyed The Tale of Tom Kitten and its surprise ending. I didn’t go into it expecting a Just So type story, but Beatrix Potter has given us one.
In the Golden Treasury (the Treasury from past days, but will have to distinguish from the World Treasury starting today) we had the fox and wolf poems from the other day preceding three lamb poems. I wonder if Untermeyer was thinking about the predators laying down with the lambs when he anthologized these in this order. Anyway, we had Blake who specifically compares young children as lambs to Jesus as the Lamb. Mary has a Little Lamb follows, and I love the last stanza – why does the lamb love Mary? Why because she loves him. And the final one was one I did not know previously, but enjoyed thoroughly. The lambs in spring. As we have freezing rain anticipating snow, the idea of galivanting lambs in spring is delightful. I hope to find snowdrops tomorrow.
Since I’ve finished the picture books I purchased (and haven’t search out the ones I already owned) I began The World Treasury of Children’s Literature compiled by Clifton Fadiman (ooh … related to Anne of Ex Libris? Indeed, her father.) Starting with Book 1. As a younger person, or as a young mother reading to children, I certainly would have skipped the “Let’s Talk” preface, but as an older mom reading for herself, I did not. It did not disappoint.
During those 10 years [4-14] I read for readings sake. I didn’t do it to learn anything, though I found later on that I had learned a lot.” pg. xiv
Today’s Uncle Remus story is of a flood, perhaps not the flood as there is no ark and Uncle R does not wish to add one. In this tale, an Elephant crushes a crawdad and the crawdads – in fear and anger – dig down into the ground so deep that the water ascends and deluges the field where the animals are meeting. As I was typing this, I thought of that old silly song where a flea stepped on an elephant’s toe and with tears in his eyes he suggests the flea pick on someone his own size. Ooh oh, ain’t it great to be crazy.
I plan to post this week’s Amble on my blog in a little bit, although I’ve been doing a whole lot of sitting today and probably should accomplish something that includes movement.