Hanging on by 3 Threads and a Band-aid - 'The Trumpet of the Swan' E.B. White

I have taught in a co-op for homeschool students for about 5 years. One of my favorite groups to teach are late elementary through early middle school students. I love connecting students with the good and the greats- literature and other stories. One of the books I never read as a child is The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White. I have learned so much from reading these along with my students; I say these as I have read his other 2 well known books for children, Charlotte's Webb and Stuart Little  and a precious biography by Melissa Sweet, Some Writer;The Story of E.B. White.
Why should anyone read these? E.B. White was a simple writer, approachable by anyone, of any age. His stories connect living things from aspects of everyday life. Both human and animals, anthropomorphized, have challenges and experiences that draw us in to a hope for a slower and deeper existence. Especially now in our hectic, electrified world, we need books that bring our souls to their natural speed.
While these books seem like children's books, they are an excellent diversion for the adult reader for a bit of delight in our world. Not only does the reader experience the simple delights but we can see resilience and perseverance in a parent. With my own children, I am challenged with the balance of doing for and loving in the right ways. Watching 'the Cob', Louis's father go to great lengths to provide an unusual need for his son, he is also injured. I laughed yesterday on my walk as I enjoyed my own thoughts. Somehow I felt I was hanging on by 'three threads and a band-aid.' Yet it felt like enough. Why? Why a band-aid. Our thoughts will churn up what we've assimilated (vocabulary word from our class) if we quiet our souls, and turn off our phones(mine had died.) Louis's father had been given a band-aid for his gun-shot wound. There's the band-aid! I laughed out-loud when I realized why I was thinking that. And then I reflected on the father doing his best for his son, the son who had a speech impediment.
I never read this book when I was younger. We were already immersed in 'made for tv' and movie versions of great books. The 1973 version of 'Charlotte's Web,' is exceptional in its quality, but it's not like a slow read, where you imagine the farm of E.B. White's youth. All of his stories include interesting details from his childhood, like the music store to where his father flies. But reading it with new eyes in the last few years, incorporating IEW techniques, such as unit 5 'Writing from Pictures,' and the 3 paragraph format, including simple dress-ups has been wonderful. Writing across the curriculum need not be forced. I believe E.B. White's work will be part of our studies for quite some time. It's a perfect fit of details and simple writing.

You Can't fix a Broken Heart with a Hot Glue Gun-- But can You?

I have been drinking hot water with lemons for some time. Like, for a few years. Dad and Uncle Jerry, who was the healthier of the two brothers, both recommended it highly. Dad was a 'believer,' in healthy food and healthy living, but loved bar-b-que (an entire food group if you live in Memphis, or the South,) and hamburgers from McDonald's. But he ate a lot of fruit and read books like 'Get the Sugar Out.' I'm pretty certain he had read 'It Starts with Food,' at Kelley's recommendation long before I knew it existed.  He knew. Anyhooo, 
I recently read a plan to avoid cancer that recommended it (hot water and lemons.) I'll take that as confirmation. 
Being assertive about food choices is a risky business. Failure is bound to occur. However, 30 days is 30 days. It's not a lifetime commitment. But relapse is a given if one goes right back to all the foods eliminated after such a deliberate effort is made to learn and become more healthy. 
Milk. Milk is my nemesis. Or better, milk with sugar. 
I've adapted to black coffee. Yay! but milkshakes, eggnog, cheese. No way. So, I've learned to read labels and avoid the large dose of these items. 
Sugar is not as tough as it once was. LaCroix is a lifesaver for needing a 'fizz-fix.' 
But sometimes the 'fix' needs to be bigger. The pain is harder. When you pull away the crutches, say of food, the causes of pain or stress don't go away. And when 30 days is up, you must decide how you will cope. 
One of the ways I've been working through the exposed needs is preparing and reinforcing my 'echo chamber.' An echo chamber get's a bad rap from believing all avoidance is bad. But avoiding negative or bad influence is setting a wall of protection. What I choose to let in or direct my chaotic world is just as important as what I put into my physical body. 
To that end, 
1)I've been checking my 'playlists,' and being certain when I need a tune to 'GET UP AND MOVE,' song, it's ready. 
2) I have an app for exercise, that is active even if I forget to start it. 
3) I'm documenting what I'm accomplishing. If it's a book I need to read, I'm dating the completion. If it's a reading group, I set a time. If it's an appointment that needs to be set for physical or mental health-- set the appointment. 
This has helped with 'analysis paralysis.' Take the time to think through the plan, set the details, and do it. Go at it with confident humility. But go at it. 
4)Decide what needs to be tossed and what needs to be hot-glued. Really. Somethings, physical and emotional, need to be tossed, while others need repair. Knowing what to let go and what to keep-- that's how efforts like a #whole30 can help. 
'It (really does) start with food.'  
I'm glad I did it. I'm glad I'm doing it. No regrets.