Bibliopolis Beautification Day

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Some of you who aren’t physically at Gracepoint Berkeley church have requested more photos of Bibliopolis. Yesterday, Auntie Jenny and the 3rd grade girls (aka Kangaroos) converted a dirt patch into a lovely draught-friendly stone garden. It’s awesome seeing them take ownership and constantly thinking of ways to make our space more inviting!

Pre-construction design meeting (looks forreal) led by Auntie Jenny, whose pose is decidedly Thinker-esque.

If we had a bigger space, we could make an actual labyrinth for people to reflect or pray! #gardengoals

“Collaboration is Our Destination,” as they say.

Tada! Our garden is a work-in-progress, but it’s already lovely! (Logs aren’t just for bonfires, but useful for garden borders)

 

Coming soon: the Bibliopolis Community Garden Project. My gardeners hope to grow green onions, perilla leaves, tomatoes, strawberries (Justin), and more. They want to sell them as fundraisers for more books!

Caring for plants, and growing fruits and vegetables have so much in common with fostering the love of reading. They both involve patience and struggle. You learn some deep lessons about what it takes to cultivate your mind to be good soil. How you need diligence to be on the lookout for weeds, pests, and other mangy animals that might destroy what you’ve been working hard at growing. You experience the joys of growth, too!

 

Favorite Friday: “The C.S. Lewis Five” (a one-scene screenplay)

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gbc[The Scene: Pastor Ed Kang‘s office hours at Golden Bear Cafe. The year: let’s just say it’s around the turn of the century. I know you’re surprised I was in college at the time, but you have to remember I started college when I was 8*. ]

Mind you, this was a gazillion years ago, so I’ve used creative license liberally in the following screenplay. But I do remember this encounter, and how I wanted to show Pastor Ed I was interested in conversing about things like books and literature — so above the fray of the typical college student. Ha!

HEK:  Pastor Ed, I love to read. What Christian books do you recommend I read? (hopeful this opens up the way to talk shop about books we have in common.)

EHK: Have you read C.S. Lewis?

HEK: (smiling, because The Chronicles of Narnia was a childhood favorite). Yes, I just love Lewis’ ability to explore spiritual truths through what seems to be an innocent children’s story. I do love me some Narnia.

EHK: (smiling graciously) Ah yes, Narnia is splendiferous, to be sure. Now, have you read Mere Christianity?

HEK: (puzzled because it seems kind of strange to call Christianity mere…) …um…

EHK: (fatherly chuckle, if Yoda chuckled) Much to learn, you still have, young padawan.

HEK: (Yes! I know this one!) Haha, Star Wars! I just love Star Wars…

EHK: (leaning forward, voice hushed as though preparing to reveal the secret to life) Here are the five must reads by C.S. Lewis. After you read them, then we can talk about other Christian books.

HEK: (takes out actual notebook and pen, because smartphones with notepad apps didn’t exist yet.) I’m ready!

EHK: Mere Christianity, The Problem of Pain, Miracles, The Screwtape Letters, and The Abolition of Man. In that order.

HEK:  Golly gee willikers, thanks a bunch. This is nifty! (Sorry, 1990’s, not 1950’s). Awesome! (that word has been used as a filler to express a wide range of emotion for a long time.)

So there you have it. Did you miss it? Pastor Ed’s short list is what I’ve since then thought of as “The C.S. Lewis Five”. I’ve passed that list on to many a padawan at Gracepoint Berkeley church myself.

  1. Mere Christianity
  2. The Problem of Pain**
  3. Miracles
  4. The Screwtape Letters***
  5. The Abolition of Man
six by lewis

photo of this ancient relic courtesy of an amazon.com customer

I was too excited I had this list to be embarrassed. Only in retrospect do I shake my head. Proof that once a teacher’s pet always a teacher’s pet! And how happy was I (mixed with embarrassed) when I went home to my parents’ house and saw this exact set of books sitting right alongside my Narnia set. (It was actually Six by Lewis, because The Great Divorce was thrown in as a bonus, I guess.)

How about you? Have you read “The C.S. Lewis Five”? Which one is your favorite?

*J/K.

**My personal favorite.

***Or maybe this one is.

Throwback Thursday: Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes

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TBTIn a previous Throwback Thursday post, I wrote about a favorite reading memory of mine from 3rd grade. Today I’m going to tell you about my favorite one from 4th grade! (I’ve got one for just about every year of my life, so you’re in luck. I’ve got about…16 more to go, since I’m 25. Ha!)

sadako coverBetween 3rd and 4th grade, I moved schools, and to what seemed like a new world. At that time, there weren’t all that many Asian-Americans up in my corner of the East Bay, so I felt super out of place. My 4th grade teacher, Mrs. McNulty, however, made Room 12 an amazing place to be. And I was thrilled when she began reading Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes for one of our read-aloud books. I knew I wasn’t Japanese, but the book was set in the same…continent, so I felt like it was close enough!

From what I recall, we didn’t learn a whole lot about World War II, but the entire class was rapt each day as we learned about Sadako and her atomic bomb-ravaged world. Of course we learned how to make paper cranes as a class activity, as did most people who I’ve talked about this book with.

As a testament to how powerful a reading experience this was for me, as well as to how nerdy I am was, I take you back to Room 12 to the last day of reading this book. As we approached the emotional ending of the book, Mrs. McNulty got choked up and couldn’t continue reading. She asked if someone else could finish reading the book to the class. I remember *really* wanting her to pick me to read aloud to the class, because I was a teacher’s pet like that. I also remember being super miffed because my 8-year-old self was in tears too, so I couldn’t seize this awesome opportunity.

I wanted to share about this book is because there is powerful historical fiction for almost every age level. You can learn about real events, real people, and the stories of their lives, and it doesn’t have to be boring! This was one of the first historical fiction books I read, and since then, I’ve been hooked. I am a sucker for any book that immerses me into an actual time and place where real events took place. To this day I am pretty much unable to resist any book set during World War II.

With Sadako, I experienced the incredible power of reading about people who both looked a lot like me, and yet lived in a world entirely different from my own. You see, Sadako Sasaki was a real girl.  And today there is a Children’s Peace Monument in Japan, as well as a memorial at Peace Park in Seattle in remembrance of her, and of others who died as a result of the atomic bombs. I hope I can visit this memorial with Timmy from Gracepoint Seattle, and some of his friends for our Summer Reading Getaway.  After we read the book together, of course!

sadako in japan

Children’s Peace Monument in Hiroshima, Japan

sadako memorial

statue of Sadako Sasaki at the Peace Park in Seattle, Washington

How about you? Do you love/hate historical fiction? What are some of your favorite historical fiction books? Feel free to share recommendations too, since I am always looking for great books to read with and to our youngsters.