One of my biggest laughs of 2011

i thought i would start the new year with a few reminiscing posts. pondering, enjoying, reflecting and celebrating the past is a way for me to turn my face forward and allow the momentum of what is behind to propel me toward what is ahead. maybe now you can understand a bit why i want to spend a few posts celebrating and reflecting on the past year. let's start with something light, shall we?

wyatt gives me one of my biggest laughs of 2011

it is important to me that my kids love to read. i want them to get lost in other worlds, be challenged by others' thoughts and be stimulated by wisdom from other pilgrims. i want them to enjoy what is current--be thrilled with Percy Jackson and amused by Junny B. Jones--but i also want them to appreciate the richness of Huckleberry Finn and the complexity of a Tale of Two Cities. i want my boys to love reading the way i do. for me, characters i have met in stories have been my teachers, companions, friends and sometimes my adversaries. i grow when i read. i find myself. i find God. i want nothing less for my kids.

to accomplish this goal, the boys and i spend lots of time cuddled up on my bed reading. our most recent adventure was the children's illustrated classic of Moby Dick. both boys have been fascinated with whales for a couple of years. when i summarized the story of the great, white whale, they took an immediate interest and begged me to check it out at the library. night after night, i read to them the thrilling tale of captain ahab and his obsessive pursuit of the elusive moby dick. the boys were captivated. i would hear them yelling to each other from one room to another, "have you seen the white whale?" they loved it. they couldn't wait to find out if ahab would finally get his revenge on moby dick.

when we finished the story, i was intent on having a teaching moment. i wanted to delve into the book's central theme of revenge and its destructive nature. as i closed the book, i looked at both boys and very seriously asked, "now boys, what can we learn from the story of Moby Dick?"

with the most intense look and solemn reply Wyatt said, "to never go whaling."

i lost it. i laughed and laughed and laughed. i guess lesson number one you take away from a story about a giant, white whale that crashes into a ship and kills all but one person is to really think hard before you sign up to go whaling!