alicespringstomind

Theodor Seuss Geisel aka Dr. Seuss, died 25 years ago today.  Of all the great memories I have of his books, the best by far is from the days when “Miss Twelve” lived with me.  She was thirteen but obsessed about being twelve, hence the nickname.  From her first night here, Green Eggs and Ham became her favourite bed time story.  Fairly quickly I began to dread the Green Eggs and Ham hole that drilled itself into my brain every evening.  Miss Twelve could not read but she became so familiar so quickly, with Green Eggs and Ham, that she learned exactly when to turn the page.  The first night this happened there was wild excitement that she “know how to read”!  A child who had hardly been to school in her first twelve years of life, became dedicated to learning – at least in part thanks to Dr Seuss but also in part thanks to the behavioural management of her very skilled teachers.  She is all grown up now and embarking on motherhood.

Many of the local children I’ve known and loved here in Alice Springs have families of their own now.  That’s a strange feeling.  So is the feeling, after owning a permanent position for eighteen years, of making the decision to resign.  But time really has flewn and new adventures await.  I said I would wait a year before making any decisions about this and ten months in, I came close to keeping my word.

If you want to get things you can’t buy in a store
You have to do things never thought of before
~  Dr Seuss