Nine is Divine! How Dr Seuss Shaped My Thinking

Life is serious. Just think about it for a moment. All kinds of child like wonders and accomplishments evaporate when we have to be responsible, serious adults. So, I've been thinking. What if I looked at life the same way I did when I was a wee lass? OK, what if I tried to see my everyday life like a 9 year sees hers? Roller skating, jump roping, and the occasional trip to the local swimming pool were the best activities a little girl could engage in. Yep, I've decided that nine is Divine!I've decided to live my life like I did when I was in 4th grade? I remember loving math. I was good at math. When other children were sweating over times tables, I was cool as a cucumber. Yep, just give me 7 times 8 and I will knock your socks off. My brain was kickin'. Spelling was a breeze too. Reading was the best. What could be better than engulfing myself in a good book?My school teachers always said things like "you can go anywhere in the world when you read a book". I didn't much car
e for loooong, overly descriptive stories, I preferred the kinds of stories that I could identify with and finish in an hour or two. Certain authors like Beverly Cleary had a gift for drawing me into the lives of her characters that lived on Klickitat Street. She breathed life into Ramona Quimby, Beezuz, Henry, and Ribsy the dog I lived those stories. I knew those characters. When I read Cleary's books I wasn't afraid of getting stuck in a book I didn't like or couldn't follow.But of course, my absolute favorite author was Dr. Seuss. His real name was Theodor Seuss Geisel but he also authored many easy readers under the pen names Theo LeSieg and Theodor Geisel. Those books were long enough to keep my attention and short enough for me to feel satisfied at finishing. A Seuss story was a cool glass of lemonade on a hot summer afternoon. Ah yes! Another imaginative, outstanding tale. Take, for instance, The Sneetches. What is a Sneetch anyway? I learned about prejudicial nonsens
e from a nonsensical tale of fictional creatures whose snobbishness led them to be easy prey for a non scrupulous carpet-bagger. Vivid illustrations ignited a spark of imagination in my eager little mind with which the real world could not possibly compete. Characters like Horton, with tireless integrity hatched the egg or Bartholomew and his 500 hats, or the stubborn Zax kept me turning pages. What fun to hear about a Lorax, who spoke for the trees or a borfin that schlumps in the night? Cats wearing hats, Bee watchers, and blue fish kept me reading, wondering where the yarn could possibly go next. Who can forget the Grinch? His magnanimous change of heart provided hope for generations of children and helped us keep perspective about what is most precious in our lives.My teachers never explained what a whammel faddle was but Dr. Seuss did. And he was a Doctor! Or so I thought. He wouldn't tell us about places and adventures that were a waste of time would he?! NO, the good
doctor painted the most vibrant, exhilarating canvases for us to absorb. Seuss was noted for saying "Nonsense wakes up the brain cells. And it helps develop a sense of humor, which is awfully important in this day and age". He said those words a lifetime ago and yet, to this day, I cannot read a divinely crafted Seuss story without smiling and giggling like a little nine-year-old girl.

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