Black Blizzard

On May 11, 1934, "dust lodged itself in the eyes and throats of weeping and coughing New Yorkers" who strolled down Madison Avenue.  Tourists on the observation deck of the Empire State Building could hardly see more than a wall of haze.  Darkness descended over the city at noon.  Was it local pollution?  No, for the same dust blew across Beacon Hill in Boston, Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington D.C. and Peachtree Street in Atlanta.  In fact, even ships 300 miles off the Eastern Seaboard had dust covering their decks.  The origin of the dust was 2000 miles away in an area which would soon become known as "The Dust Bowl".  On this day, Americans would endure the violent storm that would become a symbol of the Dirty Thirties, a black blizzard.

Back in the 1800's, the Great Plains were covered by prairie grass which the buffalo would graze on.  However, as pioneers pushed the frontier further west, they settled the land, and plowed the fields.  During World War I, the demand for wheat skyrocketed and by the 1920's, American wheat production increased by 300%, thanks in large part to the newly invented tractors. 

In 1931, the Great Plains was hit by a severe drought.  In 1932, fourteen dust storms raged across the prairies.  By 1933, the total number of storms had doubled to 28.  Although the dust storms decreased in number the following year, they increased in intensity.  As migrants from Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas, and New Mexico headed west to California to look for work picking fruit, the dust headed east.  Three hundred and fifty million tons of silt landed on major cities like New York, Boston and Atlanta. 

The great dust storm of May 11, 1934 was a reminder to the city dwellers that their country cousins were not fairing so well.  Hugh Bennett, a soil conservation advocate employed by the government, was in a meeting in Washington D.C. that day, pleading with United States Senators to support his plan to preserve the soil.  At first, he got little support; however, by midday, a massive wind whipped up and the sky turned black.  To rest his case, Mr. Bennett pointed out the window, saying:  "There goes Oklahoma!"  Finally, in 1935, President Roosevelt had federal regulations passed to ensure crop rotation, grass-seeding and new plowing methods be used by American farmers.  However, it would not be until the Fall of 1939, with the end of the drought, that America would find true relief.

Photo of dust storm in Oklahoma in the 1930's courtesy http://static.ddmcdn.com.

 

Floating Palaces

According to http://shareranks.com, the world's top ten ocean liners in history are:

1.  Titanic (1912)

2.  Olympic (1911)

3.  Queen Mary 2 (2003)

4.  United States (1952)

5.  Nieuw Amsterdam (1905)

6.  Normandie (1932)

7.  Queen Mary 1 (1934)

8.  Bremen (1929)







9.  Queen Elizabeth 2 (1969)

10.  Lusitania (1906)

Art Imitates Life

Robert Munsch, born and raised in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, worked in a daycare for years.  In the mid-seventies he moved to Canada where he found a job at the University of Guelph.  His boss's wife read one of his stories and suggested that he seek a publisher, but he declined.  Then his boss made the suggestion, giving him two months off to devote to writing.  Mr. Munsch explained that he relaxed for two months but on the last day, he mailed out ten manuscripts:  nine were rejected, but one was accepted, Mud Puddle, about an Oregon girl that he met on a nursery school playground who was playing in a giant mud puddle.

Robert Munsch says "it takes at least 200 tellings for a story to get really get good".  The children's author finds much of his material in real life when he tells his stories at schools, libraries and daycares. Many of his characters really do exist.  For instance, Robert wrote Love You Forever after his wife suffered two stillborn births in 1979 and 1980.  Happily, the Munsch's successfully adopted three healthy children in subsequent years.  Ribbon Rescue is based on a girl wearing a dress with ribbons who attended one of his story-telling sessions.  Lighthouse is about two children he met in Pontiac, Michigan.  Boo! is about a little boy named Lance who loved Halloween whom the author met at Lloyd George Public School, right in front of the Hamilton steel mills.  More Pies! is a story he used to tell about a boy named Samuel at lunch time; however, he did not actually know a Samuel.  So he waited for a fan mail letter, amongst the 10,000 a year he received, from a Samuel.  Soon he had his Samuel, and he added a little brother just like Samuel's real life brother.  Andrew's Loose Tooth, is based on both a boy from Fort Qu'Appelle, Saskatchewan who was missing his front teeth, and Mr. Munsch's son, Andrew.  Stephanie's Ponytail is based on a girl with a ponytail sticking right out of the top of her head who attended one of the author's story-tellings.  While helping his friends host a birthday party for their daughter Kirsten whose mother was expecting a baby, Robert got the idea for the story Baby Alligator about a Mommy who goes to the zoo rather than the hospital and comes home with an alligator.  The inspiration for The Sandcastle Contest was twofold:  first, Robert's daughter Tyya loved to build sancastles; secondly, the Munsch's neighbours, the Luttman's, used to pack up everything but the kitchen sink and tie it to the top of their camper every summer when they went on vacation.  Thomas' Snowsuit was based on a Halifax classroom full of students garbed in snowsuits after Robert had told them every story he knew and had to come up with a new one off the top of his head.  Too Much Stuff is based on a girl named Temina whom the author met on a plane ride who unpacked her suitcase full of dolls; the book was almost called Temina's Dolls, but the publisher didn't think that boys would read such a title.  Madison from Orangeville was Robert's inspiration for Look at Me about a girl with a flower painted on her face. 

Robert Munsch has found the secret to entertaining stories:  humour is one of the ingredients; a good plot is another; but also genuineness.  He knows that real people make real stories.  To date he has published about 50 stories and written many more.  And it all started with a mud puddle.

Image of Robert Musnch and his characters courtesy www.practical-homeschooling.org.

"The Juggler" by Jacqueline

We arrived at Heritage Street United Church promptly at 9:15.  Opening the double doors of the yellow brick building, we discovered Jacqueline's friends waiting in the foyer.  The four of them sat on a big wooden bench, braids and buns bobbing, and legs swinging, as they chatted merrily.  We parents checked to make sure they had their songbooks.

We tiptoed up the steps of the church where we met a worker at the top and each girl gave him her name.  Then we waited as someone finished playing their piece.  The double doors to the sanctuary opened and in we walked, the girls taking a seat in one pew and us in another.  What a magnificent building!  The tall stain glassed windows harkened back to yesterday.  The dark stained wooden ceiling looked just as solid as the day it was constructed.  History was in the walls of that church:  I spotted a plaque dedicated to the soldiers who served in the first World War with the heading "Methodist Church".  By the Second World War, it had become a United Church. 

My thoughts were interrupted when the Kiwanis Festival official called the girls to the front:  Jacqueline, Leah and Madalyn (Laurelei was in another category).  While Rob thought the church would be full, it was almost empty.  Ironically, an empty church can be just as intimidating as a full one.  However, Jacqueline had no time to ponder this since she was the first to perform.  Clad in a peasant blouse and black tights, she walked with surprising poise to the front, announced her piece in a tiny voice and then sat down at the piano.  I sat in the pew with my eyes closed, more nervous than the pianist.  But as Jacqueline played, she gained confidence.  She hit the right notes; she found the right tempo; she remembered the staccato notes.  With the exception of a slip towards the end, she played flawlessly.  Then she settled back into the pew as the adjuticator penned some copious notes.

Jacqueline's friends also played their pieces well, showing great poise.  Then the adjudicator came to the front with her notes in hand.  She praised the girls for their performances and gave suggestions for improvement.  Jacqueline graciously accepted her first prize red ribbon.  But she was quick to congratulate the other girls, saying that they had more difficult pieces than hers.

Outside one of the mothers took photos of the foursome beside the Kiwanis Festival sign, cars whizzing past in the background.  We hugged and congratulated our daughter and then said goodbye.  She was on her way to Tim Horton's with the other girls to celebrate, her red ribbon in her hand.

Congratulations, Jacqueline!



                              


Photo of Heritage United Church (formerly Colborne Street United) courtesy http://heritageunitedchurch.ca.







 

I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed---and gazed---but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils. 

William Wordsworth   

Photo courtesy www.johnpowell.net.

Compassion

Rob and I attended a Michael W. Smith concert on Saturday night in Toronto.  It was amazing!  One of the highlights of the concert was a testimonial given by a young Hispanic man named Pedro who was helped by an organization called Compassion Canada. 

Pedro, who grew up in the Dominican Republic, was so poor that he thought about running away so he wasn't a burden to his mother.  He used to cry out to God, asking Him why he and his family had to suffer such hardships. 

Then a Canadian teenager named Ashley talked her parents into sponsoring him.  Ashley's parents were able to afford the $41-a-month fee by cancelling their second phone line.  As Pedro said:  "I am more important than a second landline."  The money went towards Christian teaching, learning opportunities, nutritious meals, medicare, life skills and vocational training for Pedro.  The young Dominican was able to train to be a computer software technician and now holds down a steady job.

One day his Mom came to him with a problem:  "Son, you are making me fat.  For the first time, Pedro and his family were able to eat meat, a rarity in the past.  Pedro is able to provide for not only himself but his family. 

Pedro's story moved us that night.  We have always given to charity, but it was nice to be able to put a face and a name to charity.  Rob and I decided that next Christmas, rather than going overboard buying gifts that we don't need, we should sponsor a child like Pedro.  Afterall, a child is more precious than any gift under the Christmas tree. 

Note:  For more information about Compassion Canada, visit www.compassion.ca.

Photo courtesy http://amazonaws.com.

The Run for the Roses

The Kentucky Derby winner in 1973 courtesy http://upload.wikimedia.org.

On May 5, 1973, guests arrived in droves at Churchill Downs in Louisville for the 99th running of the Kentucky Derby.  Under the twin-spired grandstand, men dressed in suits and ties and women in lavish gowns and fancy hats settled into their seats.  As they waited in the hot sun for the race to commence, they sipped on mint juleps served in souvenir glasses and ate burgoo, a thick stew filled with beef, pork, chicken and vegetables, and Derby pie, filled with walnuts and chocolate.  Guests in Millionaire's Row had the best view of the track, paying handsomely for their front row box seats, but fans who could not afford stand seats sat in the infield.  They listened to the University of Louisville Marching Band perform the traditional derby song "My Old Kentucky Home".  Bettors made their last minute bets on horses like Our Native, Navajo, Royal and Regal, My Gallant and Secretariat.

Back at the stables, grooms, trainers, vets, blacksmiths, jockeys and owners all prepped their 3-year-old colts for the "Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports".  The colts munched on oats and molasses as their grooms brushed their coats and their owners paced nervously back and forth.  The smell of hay permeated the air.  The whinnying of the tall, lean horses echoed through the stalls.

One stall in particular was occupied by a chestnut-coloured stallion named Secretariat, standing 16.2 hands tall and weighing 1,175 pounds.  His owner, Penny Chenery, was a housewife who had no horse-racing experience, but had taken charge of his care after her elderly father fell ill.  His trainer was Lucien Laurin and his jockey was Canadian Ron Turcotte.  Secretariat had won races in the past, but had lost his most recent race.  He was definitely not a sure bet.

Photo of Kentucky Derby 1973 Lineup courtesy www.secretariat.com.

As the thirteen competitors stormed out of the gate and pounded down the track, kicking up dirt, the horses known for speed took the lead in the one-and-a-quarter mile race, but Secretariat was content to sit back and set his own pace.  When the colts passed the 50,000 fans in the stands, Secretariat ranked only eleventh.  However, bit by bit he inched his way forward.  Rounding the far turn, he still only sat in fifth place.  Even so, with each length, he gained speed and ground.  The announcer tossed names around:  it was anybody's race.  As the colts ran the final stretch, Secretariat made her move, passing the last of his competition and clinching the victory in a record time of 1:59: 40.  As a spectator later described Secretariat's race, he "built power like a locomotive and finished like a jet".   The chestnut-coloured colt was decorated with a blanket of 554 red roses and his owner was awarded a prize of almost 1 1/2 million dollars. 

As security guards slowly emptied the stands at Churchill Downs, some spectators reluctantly emptied their pockets, having bet on a losing horse.  Others filled their pockets, having bet on the winning horse.  The fans then returned to their Cadillacs and pick-up trucks to make the drive home; the horses returned to their stalls, glistening with sweat; the jockeys stretched their tired legs and hit the showers.  But for one horse the story continued:  Secretariat would go on to win the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes, all in the same year, to claim the prize of the Triple Crown.  The stallion graced the covers of Time, Newsweek and Sports Illustrated.

Note:  Many thanks to my sister, Lisa Allison, a horsewoman, for giving me information for this post.

Secretariat draped with red-roses blanket, accompanied by his owner, Penny Chenery, trainer Lucien Laurin, groom Eddie Sweat and jockey Ron Turcotte at Kentucky Derby 1973.