One
of the family classics – told often and dedicated today to daughter
Sarah whose birthday was yesterday
My
daughters and I have read together since before they were born. In
the womb they heard Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein among many more wonderful authors;
after the girls were born, we read the likes of Winnie the Pooh
and Tom Sawyer, Anne of Green Gables and Treasure
Island. Every other spring we shared The Hobbit, and of
course, every December, The Christmas Carol.
When
the girls were both in grade school, I thought maybe they were old
enough that I could introduce to them.....Chick Lit! And being
the wise and wonderful mother that I am, I thought, why not share
with my daughters, the best that Chick Lit has to offer?
And
so it was with Sarah in fifth grade and Amanda in second grade that
the three of us sat down together to read.....Jane Eyre!
And
the girls loved the story right from the very beginning. Because at
the beginning, Jane was a little girl, and Sarah and Amanda were
little girls!
“Wow
Mom! What happens next?”
Well,.....
Jane's parents died.
“Oh!
That would be terrible!.....What happens next?”
Jane's
relatives took her in, but then she was quickly shipped off to
boarding school where Jane was told to go to school every day, study
hard, do well, and someday she could get a good job and support
herself.
“Wow!”
said Sarah and Amanda. Their parents said the exact same things to
them every single day!
“What
happens next?”
Jane
did study hard and did do well, and she got a good job.
Jane became a governess at a mansion owned by a man named Rochester.
Ah
tall, dark, and mysterious Rochester!
Every
scene between Jane and Rochester crackled with electricity! It was
obvious they were attracted to each other. But they were from from two
different worlds!
Every
conversation between Jane and Rochester was filled with intelligence
and wit. They were falling in love! Could it happen?
One
day Sarah came home from school and said, “Mom, we have to read the
next chapter of Jane Eyre right now!” Sarah's class was
going on a field trip, and they were going to be away for two days
and two nights. Sarah said she thought Rochester might propose to
Jane in the next chapter, and she wanted to know before leaving on
the field trip.
So
the three of us read the next chapter of Jane Eyre, and sure
enough, Rochester asked Jane to marry him, and Jane, said “yes”!
I
looked over at Sarah, and she had the biggest most satisfied grin on
her face! She said, “Now I can go on my field
trip knowing that Jane and Rochester are going to get
married.”
Being
the wise and wonderful mother that I am, I just had to take this as
what they nowadays refer to as a teachable moment, and I
grabbed what was still left in the book to read, and I said, “Sarah,
there are over 200 pages left in this story to read! Do you really
think Jane and Rochester are going to get married now? Or do you
think that just maybe there are 200 pages of trials and tribulations
for them to go through before the end of the book when they may or
may not get married?”
Sarah's
smile disappeared, and she looked at me with all seriousness and
said, “I know where you are going with this, Mom,” and then with
much conviction she continued, “but I firmly believe that
two people can fall in love, get married, and have 200 pages
of happy adventures!”
Being
the wise and wonderful Mom that I am, I decided to let things go at
that comment.
Sarah
went on her field trip, and when she returned, she found out soon
enough that Jane and Rochester did indeed have 200 pages of trials,
tribulations, and major drama before the very last page where they
got married and lived happily ever after.
Sharing
Jane Eyre with my two daughters was one of the most rewarding
experiences of my life.
And now it has been more than 20 years since
we read Jane Eyre together, and being the wise and
wonderful Mom that I am, I have come to realize that in those twenty
years, this story has acquired a new ending.
It
turns out that Sarah was right all along!
Because you see, in the
real world, Sarah and Amanda went to school every day, worked hard,
did well, and today they both have phenomenal careers.
And also in this real world, Sarah and Amanda each has met her own
Rochester, fallen in love, and gotten married.
And
now, Sarah and John, Amanda and Tony – are living their 200 plus
pages of happy adventures!
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20150708 Two Hundred Pages
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