I’ve been unpacking books. Kid’s books. As a little boy, Son-shine had quite a collection of books. He also collected rocks, dinosaurs, and Matchbook cars. I’m not unpacking those if there are any stored away in the stuff he keeps promising to come get. But I am unpacking the books.
Son-shine was a ferocious reader and not only did he like to read, he loved to be read to. Then he turned sixteen and suddenly reading wasn’t his thing. Thankfully that phase of childhood stupid didn’t last long. Son-shine and I read the entire Harry Potter series together. Every book. We were like addicts with each new release and even attended two or three Harry Potter events at our local bookstore. One of them was even at midnight if I recall. His memories are as fond of those moments as mine. He called recently to ask me to send him the Harry Potter set. He plans to read them to Meemi’s Baby. That made me smile.
There are three books that stand out in my mind that Son-shine and I read together over and over again. We read them so many times that I can still recite passages of them from memory. The first was Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault. Baby boy learned his alphabet singing that song. He carried the accompanying cassette tape from the car to the tape player and back. He never went anywhere without it. Weeks of his rhyming about a coconut tree and then like that the ABC’s were a piece of cake.
The second was Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss. We read all the Dr. Seuss books but that one was his favorite. Do you like green eggs and ham? I do not like them, Sam I Am. I do not like Green Eggs and Ham. For months, everything Son-shine disliked concluded with I do not like that, Sam I Am!
The last is still my absolute favorite, The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. That one always ended with hours of him asking over and over again, do you love me? Do you love me? Do you love me? Son-shine has never known how much I love him. He couldn’t begin to comprehend the magnitude of that kind of love. But his turn’s coming. Because if Meemi’s Baby has even a fraction of his heart the way he has mine, they’re story is going to be a great page turner.
Son-shine was a ferocious reader and not only did he like to read, he loved to be read to. Then he turned sixteen and suddenly reading wasn’t his thing. Thankfully that phase of childhood stupid didn’t last long. Son-shine and I read the entire Harry Potter series together. Every book. We were like addicts with each new release and even attended two or three Harry Potter events at our local bookstore. One of them was even at midnight if I recall. His memories are as fond of those moments as mine. He called recently to ask me to send him the Harry Potter set. He plans to read them to Meemi’s Baby. That made me smile.
There are three books that stand out in my mind that Son-shine and I read together over and over again. We read them so many times that I can still recite passages of them from memory. The first was Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault. Baby boy learned his alphabet singing that song. He carried the accompanying cassette tape from the car to the tape player and back. He never went anywhere without it. Weeks of his rhyming about a coconut tree and then like that the ABC’s were a piece of cake.
The second was Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss. We read all the Dr. Seuss books but that one was his favorite. Do you like green eggs and ham? I do not like them, Sam I Am. I do not like Green Eggs and Ham. For months, everything Son-shine disliked concluded with I do not like that, Sam I Am!
The last is still my absolute favorite, The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. That one always ended with hours of him asking over and over again, do you love me? Do you love me? Do you love me? Son-shine has never known how much I love him. He couldn’t begin to comprehend the magnitude of that kind of love. But his turn’s coming. Because if Meemi’s Baby has even a fraction of his heart the way he has mine, they’re story is going to be a great page turner.
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