Book Club Naturalists

Alexia's duck seemed to think we'd lost our minds. The big female Muskovy (Cairina moschata) kept looking in the glass pane of the door - sometimes she'd even peck at the glass with her beak as if she wanted in to see what we were doing.
Really, now, is it so surprising that 8 natruralists (and one cat) would gather on the floor in front of the fireplace to look at moss through microscopes and with hand lenses? Our November book club selection was "Gathering Moss:A Natural and Cultural History" by Robin Wall Kimmerer.
We gathered, shared a wonderful harvest potluck, then spent a couple of hours on the floor enchanted by the tiny mossy "forests" and the inhabitants thereof. Miniscule transparent worms, teeny unidentified beings...what an amazing amount of life in a handful of moss.

How Book Club Saved My Sanity

I had a nice walk in the rain this morning. I went over to the library to pick up a copy of "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns. It's the February book club selection at the Monroe Library, and I've decided to give them another try.

I went last November because the Bates County Bookies had already done "Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson. It was one of our favorite books, and I thought that it would be a good introduction to the local book club. I wasn't ready for the change...although the ladies were nice and the conversation intelligent, I felt like I was betraying the Bookies. I wanted Cheryl, Sally, Jennifer, Candi, Linda H., Diane, Melissa and Donna...I wanted home-baked treats, tea, and the easy camaraderie of old friends. And they didn't serve snacks - not even tea.


The Bookies began the same summer my ex left. Cheyrl talked me into going to that first meeting. Book club gave me a reason to leave the house one evening a month at a time when I would have rather not gone out. I made new friends, we read some good books - and a few stinkers. I started to heal, and to build a life as a single person. Part of the appeal was the food! The Bookie who had chosen the book would bring treats - often homemade, and often following the theme of the book. Since "The Devil in the White City" was about the World's Fair at the turn of the century, we had Juicy Fruit gum, popcorn, iced tea and lemonaide - fair food mentioned in the book!

As I started to explore making changes - ones that I chose - the Bookies offered encouragement and practical advice. I knew that I wanted a different job, but saw my lack of a college education as a huge barrier. It was a Bookies field trip to the Cheesecake Factory that led me to believe that I still had a chance to do something different. A lucky seating arrangement put me at the table with Donna and Georgeanne. Those lovely women took the time to ask me about my dreams, and to assure me that I still had time to make them come true. They told me bits of their own stories, encouraged me to look for a classes that would move me closer to what I really wanted, and gave me tips on financing an education. By the end of the meal they had me convinced that I should go for it! I still wasn't sure what "it" was, but I knew I was going to start looking for it.

I'm going to start "Cold Sassy Tree" tonight. I'll have to call the library to let them know I'll be coming to book club on Tuesday, even though I couldn't get that book. Who knows who I'll meet there. Perhaps my next mentor will be there...or my first student...