Quote for the day: why writers write

This is kind of a quote within a quote within a quote.  It's from a review of Katherine Paterson's book Gates of Excellence, in which she quotes from both Edith Hamilton (who is quoting from Hesiod) and Charles Schultz.  Gates of Excellence is where I first heard (years ago) of Children of the Fox, which I tracked down and read, and which I then had to "sweat" to get through ILL so that we could use it in school this year.

At the beginning of the book, when Paterson is asked when she wanted to be a writer, she explains that it was her love of reading that made her want to “get inside the process (Paterson, p. 2)” not that she ever wanted to be a writer at all. In this opening essay, she shares two items in her office that apparently protect her from her “terror of mediocrity.” One is a Greek quote borrowed from Edith Hamilton which also provides the title for this collection:

Before the gates of excellence
The high gods have placed sweat (Ibid, p. 3).

The other is a mounted Charles Schultz cartoon of Snoopy typing, “It was a dark and stormy night.” Snoopy then remarks, “Good writing is hard work.” I’m not sure the Greeks actually said “sweat” but the point is both remind her that she is a worker, not a part of some gifted group bestowing their words on “less fortunate mortals (Ibid p.3).”

What's up in the Treehouse? (A Snowie Day) (updated)

(Words to the poem are here)

If you didn't get the hint from the Loreena McKennitt video and the Lampman poem, it's a snow day here as well as in many other places.  And it's not just snow on the ground: that stuff is still coming down.

So Ponytails doesn't have high school, and none of the rest of us had plans to go anywhere this morning.  The Apprentice is at her university, which is also closed because of snow.

Mr. Fixit's surgery was a month ago tomorrow, and while he hasn't had any complications, it's taken him the whole month to start feeling like his insides (and outsides) are getting back to normal.

Mama Squirrel is happy because the very-hard-to-find Children of the Fox arrived at the library this week, and now we get to read it. (Kirkus review here.)

Highlights of our various school weeks:

The Apprentice helped dissect a brain.  She says that it's amazing that that thing can be inside a human head.

Ponytails started her new semester.  She has classes in English, math, Canadian history (all required credits), and photography.  The English class will be studying Life of Pi, Romeo and Juliet, and To Kill a Mockingbird.

Dollygirl helped clean, solder, and paint a radio, and discovered that she is amazing at making tissue-paper flowers.  (Photo to come.)

Things to do on a Snow Day:  Dollygirl's private-schooled friend came over so that they could "do homework" together. I gave Dollygirl some extra math pages to do, and she helped quiz her friend with some French work. After making (and eating) some microwave S'mores, they put all their snow things back on and headed to the friend's house to play in a sort of igloo they are building in her back yard. Dollygirl is staying for supper, which is probably a good thing since she can stay put there for awhile, and it's still snowing and blowing.