Today I had the pleasure of visiting not one, but three classes of second-grade superheroes. The first two classes were classmates of my cousin’s son, Owen, in Grafton, WI. It was like a homecoming of sorts, because I was with them last year around this time to read Mr. Quigley’s Keys with them. Today I had the pleasure of sharing Knit Back Together.
Next stop, Mrs. Huber’s class in Cedarburg, WI, where I got to enJOY not only reading my book, but also sharing with them about the writing process, specifically the editing and revising step that some budding authors would rather skip.
I get it; I didn’t much care for the myriad edits that I kept on making, especially when they kept me up at night, but since I wanted the book to be the best that it could be, I kept on revising until I had it exactly the way it is now, two Focus Groups and so many versions later.
After falling for these incredible superhero friends, I left with a spring in my step and a request that they send pictures when they’d finished the coloring sheets we gave them.
Here now, their beautiful works of heart:
Slippers and smiles that exude their best-effort Dolphin pride.
Tomorrow, I’m off to another favorite, Howard Elementary near Green Bay.
As the sun sets on this incredible day, I’m counting my blessings . . .
. . . and that includes you, dear reader. Thank you for being a part of my journey.
With or without brackets, it’s still the same, heartfelt story . . .
And we have an updated cover!
. . . with magnets and stickers of a favorite page ready to go.
We were hoping to have copies available for purchase by now, but we’ve encountered a few obstacles, one of which seems to be a technical glitch with the brackets around the word Back.
Interestingly enough, I was waffling about using them just prior to publication. When I met with Cecily (7th grade) and Daisy (4th grade), they had differing takes on the brackets. Daisy didn’t understand their purpose so she didn’t think they needed to be there. Cecily, on the other hand, thought it was cool to use the brackets to give the story two different titles – Knit TogetherandKnit Back Together – probably because of her age and maturity as a writer and a reader.
When I first came up with the story’s title, I was thinking like Cecily, that it’d be a fun talking point with our upper elementary readers. But, as an author, I’m also careful to not be married to my words, because hurdles happen. And not always things that we can anticipate
Like the brackets in a font that doesn’t seem readable to an isbn-number technology.
With or without brackets in the title, our story is back on track for publication this month.
Now, I just need to order some new cover-image stickers from Cecily and Daisy.
Oh, and some of those tasty Bookies that I bought for McKenna and me!
Thank you for your warm wishes and your patience, dear reader.
Hello August; can I ask you where June and July went?
I know for me, a lot of hours were spent playing around … and playing with words as I put the finishing edits on the text for my new picture book. Just yesterday, I met with the last of my Young Minds Focus Groups; what a great experience, to read my book aloud and get first-hand feedback from the actual audience that I’m writing this book for.
Their mom posted this lovely reflection after our time together:
I was blessed to work with their older brother, Even, when they first moved to town a decade ago; as a bonus, he was there visiting as I read to the girls to get their thoughts and feelings. I wanted to ask him how it felt to have storytime with Mrs. Gruener after all of these years, but I chickened out. He was in the fifth grade back then and I didn’t want to embarrass either of us.
So the book is coming along beautifully; any day now, the editor will start working on adding fonts and editing any errors or issues. We are hopeful for a September release.
For fun, I’m sharing my favorite illustration from our uber-talented Art Educator and Artist, McKenna Giamfortone. Just look at how brilliant her black-line watercolor pictures are.
Can you feel the warmth on this page, even without the context or the words?
I’ve also used coloring.app to create a coloring sheet to complement our story.
I am so very grateful to the Road To Awesome publishing team and excited about putting this story out into the world and onto the hearts of its potential readers. To create intrigue, I will share that the traits it tackles include loss, grief, friendship, joy and love while it revolves around the healing powers of knitting.
Stay tuned for more details; do reach out if you’ve got a budding author or artist who would like to be a part of my Young Minds Focus Group. It’s a great chance to get inside the heart and mind of an author while possibly providing key changes that could make our story even better.
Today I’m excited because this podcast episode with my publisher dropped first thing this morning. What a fun way to kick off the week of Christmas 2024.
It can be a little daunting to record a visit without knowing the questions ahead of time, but that’s exactly what I did with my Character Speaks podcast, to keep it fresh. I loved the authenticity and vulnerability of the on-the-spot responses that always came straight from the heart. Our visit is about 45 minutes long, so lace up your walking shoes and listen in on what we have to say about our leadership practices, habits and recommendations.
Spoiler alert: Darrin does get a little emotional at the end, a podcast first for this leadership guru!
Speaking of emotional, I just returned from WI, where I had not only a lovely early Christmas with my extended family, but also a chance to visit with two first-grade class families and then two second-grade classes. At the first school, I got to read Mr. Quigley’s Keys.
I left them each with an empaKEY on a red string, to remind them that they hold the key to unlock hearts by listening and loving, sharing compassion and kindness.
The teacher realized that she’d forgotten to order one; thankfully I always carry extras!
After the visit, I received this kind affirmation from her:
Hello Barbara,
Your presentation was absolutely wonderful! I thorughly enjoyed it and the kids were so engaged! You have such a gift. Thank you for sharing it with us! I look forward to seeing your future books … maybe about Winthrop … maybe a whole series! The kids adored him!
Thank you again for sharing your holiday time with us. Have a very blessed Christmas and a peaceful New Year.
In His Service, Deanne
Who’s Winthrop, you ask?
He’s the bird that helps me set the stage for my empathy explanation since that’s one of the themes of Birdie & Mipps. Don’t you just love how the two girls on the left are responding to him? Perhaps he does need a book of his own … hmmmmm.
In the middle of our read-aloud, one of the boys wondered aloud: “Hey, is this a personal narrative?” Then he added, “Wait, are you the girl?”
I gave this group each a sticker with a cardinal on it and we talked about what the American male cardinal is said to represent.
On his way to recess, one boy showed his teacher his sticker and said, “I’ll use this to remember my dad.” Be still my soul.
So many text-to-self connections that morning; you just never know how each reader will engage and respond, and what they will take away and remember from the story and the visit.
And that’s how I’ve been leaning into leadership lately.
Thank you for visiting my blog today; do let me know if ever I can visit the superheroes in your class family either in person or via Zoom.
This evening, I spent time stringing 40 vintage keys for the first-grade classes on my next author visit.
During my 40-minute visit, we’ll discuss empathy, one of the themes in Birdie & Mipps, and I’ll point out that empathy is key to connecting with someone by heart. I’ll refer to the key I’ll be wearing as my key reminder, which I also use to illustrate how authors play with words and sometimes even make new words, like calling my necklace an empa-KEY. They giggle and then get so excited to know that I’ve brought one for each of them, all different in shape and size, just like us. So fun, just like this comic that my friend Liz sent my way this week.
In the book, I mention that when mom calls me Barb-a-ra-Suz-anne, that likely means that she’s angry or frustrated with me, so this makes me smile.
Know what else makes me smile? Last week, a family that I babysat for during college 40 years ago reached out to inquire about the best place to buy a copy of Birdie & Mipps. I told her that I’d be happy to send a copy, so that I could sign it for them. Our longstanding and close relationship is one that I treasure, for sure, so I sent priority mail their way, complete with the book and a cardinal ornament. This beautiful text came in on Friday.
Words have power; I am, at once, grateful and humbled by Barb’s kind affirmations. That’s right, she and I share the same name, another way that we are connected. The gift of her friendship and love for four decades way outweighs what she felt was my generosity in sending them a book. A win-win, for sure.
Kindness doesn’t have to be a grand gesture to be great. Share a story. Send a text. Or, like what happened to me this afternoon, pick up the phone and Facetime a former teacher, a neighbor, a Grammy, an old friend. You may not know whether they’re running on empty, but I’ll guarantee that it’ll fill their emotional reserve right up and make them want to return the love in kind.
Kind words are keys that unlock all doors; they’re also a beautiful blanket that warms our world.
As we inch our way toward Thanksgiving 2024, how will you express kindness and gratitude this week? Who has shown empathy, compassion, and kindness toward you?
Today I’ve been thinking about the gift of belonging after my friend Margaret texted me this picture of her school’s 2nd annual Literacy Night.
She shared this with me: “At our Literacy Night, each teacher was asked to pick their top five books parents should have in their homes for children to read. Your book made the pick for our second grade teacher.” Gosh it feels good to belong; just look at Mr. Quigley’s Keys next to Where The Wild Things Are. Be still my author’s soul.
But why does belonging matter so much? We are wired for connection; it’s a fundamental human need. We are social beings who thrive on interactions with one another. Just above our basic physical needs like food and shelter and our need for safety come love and belonging on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs pyramid. It simply feels good to belong.
So, by extension, when we dig deep and write from the heart, it feels good that a teacher chooses our book to be included in her recommendations for parents to read at home. I’m honored and I’m grateful.
And for Margaret to share it with me? A bonus kindness that has sent my heart soaring. Thank you, my friend, for your thoughtfulness and love; I’m so blessed to belong in your circle.
Today I’m grateful for this quick conversation with John Norlin on the CharacterStrong podcast about Leadership Rule number one: Names are important. What bliss it was to reconnect with him and talk about the importance of names and the respectful and kind use of nicknames.
Toward the end of this episode, John, the co-founder of CS, asked for a reminder for our listeners, so I said, “Empathy gives kindness its why.” We had run out of time to unpack that much further, but in an author visit in WI on Monday, I was able to share with a group of 4th-grade empathy heroes why this glorious virtue is so important.
Before we started our read-aloud, I introduced my son Jacob, who’d be playing the role of Mipps. I asked our listeners which message seemed more meaningful: This is our new student Jacob; please remember to welcome him the Howard Way and be kind to him. OR This is our new friend, Jacob, who is visiting from Texas because his Grandma just died. He’s missing his family, who didn’t get to travel with him for the funeral. Let’s remember to give him a warm welcome, the Howard way, and treat him with kindness.
Before I even finished asking the question, these budding authors were putting up two fingers to signal that the second scenario seemed more meaningful and sustainable. And they were right! When we step into one another’s story to find out why they need our compassion and how they’d like us to show up, then the connection is deeper and the chances of its longer-lasting impact increase.
Before I turned the last page as we finished the story, a boy’s hand shot up to tell me that he’d noticed that every page has a red bird. When I asked the group what that male American cardinal is said to represent, one student guessed that it was there because of the nickname Birdie. Good guess, but it goes deeper than that. It was a girl all the way in back who shared with her friends that it means that someone who has passed away is near. I asked her to repeat that before posing the question, “so whom do you think passed away?” There was a collective gasp when I shared that my brother, Mipps, had died from a heart attack and that authors often use writing as a therapeutic resource, a way to process uncomfortable, big feelings.
Before they went back to class, each learner got to choose their own vintage empaKEY, to help them remember to always treat everybody with empathy, compassion, kindness and respect.
On our way home, we stopped at Green Isle Park to breathe in the beauty of my favorite season.
Then we headed to WayMorr Park, near the family farm. Isn’t Autumn in rural Wisconsin the perfect orange backdrop for Unity day?
We brought back some of these incredible colors for a gardening club at my former elementary school; what joy we had collecting these breathtaking treasures. Oh how I wish I could bottle that scent!
And just like with people, each of these leaves is its only unique, colorful creation, even the ones that come from the same tree.
Happy Fall, dear reader; thank you for continuing to remind our future, the children, about leadership lesson number one, that names matter. Why? Because they help make us … us!
Our beautiful mom, Marilyn, died peacefully last Sunday after a five-year battle with dementia. She would have turned 87 next month.
The quintessential, modern-day Florence Nightingale, our mom served as a nurse in our community for 25 years during her younger years, first in the newborn nursery, then in hospice. We heard so many times how tenderly she’d given this baby its first bath, how patiently she’d pierced this girl’s ears, how compassionately she’d held that man’s hand through his passing and how lovingly she’d comforted the bereaved family.
She had five of her own children and seven foster children over the years, so our dinner table was always filled to capacity. The most beautiful thing happened the day after she died: One of our foster sisters from some 60 years ago actually reached out to offer to help pay for mom’s funeral expenses. How long do connection, compassion and kindness last? Sometimes a lifetime.
I was in the air, flying home to hold her hand and say goodbye, when she took her last breath. I like to think that I felt her essence as we hovered over the clouds and I’m pretty sure I got a soul hug from her on her way to her heavenly home.
You can read her obituary {here}; I was honored to have just written my mother-in-law’s obituary in August and I hope not to have to write another one for a while.
I found this treasure in her things while we were cleaning out her room; I remember it well because it was our first time to stay in a hotel, in Janesville, WI, because Dad and Mom were Easter Seals Ambassadors and we all went to their annual convention that year.
We will miss Mom like crazy, but we are grateful that she’s no longer feeling so lost and confused. Here’s a precious snapshot from July, when I got to read our story to her.
So I’ve spent the week in the farmhouse where she raised me, in the bedroom where she’d tuck me in at night. It’s very therapeutic as I relax and reflect.
This morning, I got the gift of this Midwest Book Review in my inbox. It’s from Suzie Housley, a thirty-year reviewer, who told me she found the cover inviting and the story excellent. And I’m grateful.
Have you read Birdie & Mipps yet? If so, what was your favorite part?
It’s no secret that I think about my little brother Mipps a lot, but August finds me especially melancholy because it marks the anniversary of the saddest day of our lives, the day he died.
Today, I’m thinking back 13 years, to a conversation I had with him at our pool when he came for a visit. I blogged the entire account back in 2011 {here}. Here’s a portion of the letter that came in the mail a few weeks later.
Seed money. Hmmmm. I’d not heard that term before, but I liked the idea behind it, to help put some skin in the game, if you will. Jacob did end up matching his FUNcle’s funds and ended up having a great time in Germany.
So I’ve decided that I’m starting a Seed-Money Scholarship with the proceeds from our book. In fact, I’ve already chosen our first recipient, an incoming senior in high school whose passion is infectious, whose work ethic is inspiring, and who shows up positively vivacious, wherever she goes. Simply put, she reminds me of Mipps.
So here’s how it’s going to work. I sent the first installment to her via Venmo today. When she works to earn a matching amount, I will send her the next installment. It’s that easy! If book sales don’t keep up, no worries; she’ll still receive her full scholarship.
I cannot wait to see the fruits of our investment in this compassionate, driven world-changer.
Oh, and, for fun as I work to keep sadness at bay, I recorded a read-aloud of the book, so you, dear reader, could hear it aloud how I heard it in my head when I was writing it.
Today I’m excited about Mr. Quigley’s Keys making its way to Nicaragua; here’s a picture of my Aunt Karen reading the Spanish version to these engaged and eager learners. My little Mippers would absolutely LOVE this, were he here to experience the magic.
It’s bringing up memories of Mipps and the myriad Nicaragua visits he made over the years, to build homes and help better their lives. He wrote about those experiences {here}.
Mark (Mipps) grew up the last of five children to a farming family in Wayside, WI. I was seven when he arrived on the scene to complete and forever change the face of our family. He was a doll baby and my sister, Debra, and I had fun helping mom and dad raise him. Here we are in 1972 or so, the year that Dad won Outstanding Young Farmer for our state, in a professional shot in a frame dad handcrafted from old barn wood.
About that time, a team from PBS reached out to see if we would let them film a segment for the increasingly popular television show, Wisconsin Our Home. Dad agreed and our adorable little Mippers stole the show; isn’t he precious?
Like me, Mipps took pride in showing his cattle at the Brown County Fair. Aren’t those white show pants such a fresh and polished look? He loved being around animals, big and small.
It was kind of a running joke in Nicaragua that he didn’t really go there to build houses so much as to talk with the people and play with the puppies, the kittens and the kids.
His absence has left a huge hole in our hearts; what a gift to be able to share tidbits from time to time from the legacy of connection and love that he left in and for us.
Oh, and I’m pretty excited to share that his home-building friends from the volunteer squad are starting an English program down in Nicaragua in Mark’s name in the very near future. Sigh.
The kids adored him!
Barbara Gruener 