Some of my favorite memories with my children are our bedtime routines, from heating their beds in the winter with my cast iron skillet to listening to them say their prayers, it was my favorite time of day. The one constant each night was reading a bedtime story.
I can’t remember if I had a favorite bedtime story nor if I was read to as a child. I know I didn’t read much as a child because that skill came later in life. However, I recall very well reading to my children. My oldest loved stories; she would carry piles of books and ask me to read them all to her. The next one had a few favorites but she loved making up her own stories. The fun part of her stories was that they only had pictures, no words, so the story changed each time we read them. My youngest had one favorite story and insisted on having it read over and over again; and no skipping any parts or words. Night after night, he wanted me to read the same story. This had the potential to get boring but I found a couple of different versions so we had more than one version of the story to read.
I am not sure about their memories of being read to but I know mine; they were very special bonding times with my children. Sitting close together, getting lost in a story, letting our imaginations soar. This is the true magic of storytime.
I have always loved children’s books, I have quite a few and often borrow them from the library. Sometimes, I am fortunate to have children to read them to. There is nothing like making a story come to life for a child.
It has been found that having a good imagination is a sign of intelligence. I wish someone had told me that as a child. However, I make sure to tell the children in my life that fact every chance I get. We all have our gifts and talents. Yet, our imaginations are a special gift that allows us to enter into the world of storybooks and imagine a world far different from our own. Books encourage us to use this gift because they often don’t have pictures and even if they do we have to imagine the larger picture and make it more than a flat image.
This is like the angels. We can imagine them in so many forms because they come to each of us in a way that speaks to our hearts. They are great storytellers. They ask us to use our special gift of imagination to join with them to create a world filled with love.
Ah dear ones we do come to you in so many forms and shapes and ways. We come in ways you can see and not. We come in ways of song and silence. We come in movement and in stillness. We come in trees and frogs and mist and fog. We come to share with you times of sorrow and of joy.
Know we are near and close to you. Know we are sharing with you. Know we are love.
Oh dear ones we are like your favorite story. One you like to read over and over again. We come to share your special vision of your perfect story.
We come to build love.
The Angels
It is time for a bedtime story. May the story you read open a world of possibility and shine love in your life.
Happy story-time from me and the angels,
Juju
Whisper of Angels 