This is one of my favorite children's books....Miss Rumphius, by Maine author Barbara Cooney.It's a story about Alice, who at a young age learns from her grandfather that in addition to her dreams of traveling the world and coming home to live by the sea....she must do a third thing...something to make the world more beautiful.
Alice does travel the world...and she does come home to live by the sea. And finally, to make the world more beautiful, she spreads lupin seeds all over her town....and becomes known as the lupin lady.
A few random Rumphius connections:
My son Sam, who is the one who called them "blupins," used to impress girls he was dating by quoting from Miss Rumphius...it showed his softer side.
I heard Barbara Cooney speak at an education conference when I was a teacher. She read from her books and shared the process or her art....such a wonderful experience.
One of the graduation requirements of Deering High School in Portland, Maine where I used to teach was completing a number of community service hours. It was called "The Rumphius Project" promoting it as a need to make the world more beautiful.
My friend Jane has just moved into her home by the sea....and this is her lupin garden.
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