“Yeah, she probably needed the money to make a mortgage payment on her villa.” I grumbled.
“Well, I don’t care. I am ordering my copy.” She retorted.
Two days later, it hit me. I had made a snarky comment to my mother. I was cynical.
To be honest, I don’t know when it happened. I haven’t a clue about Dr. Seuss’s widow’s intentions. Why is she publishing this book? She could be donating the book profits to charity.
As a kid, I loved And to think that I saw it all on Mulberry Street and Green Eggs and Ham (of course, despite my dad’s best efforts, I would never eat the real thing no matter how many times he made eggs in bacon grease).
Dr. Seuss’s books were silly fun and I see that the world needs a little more joy. Today, I promise myself to change for me and my family.
I promise to watch the lightening instead of worrying about it frying my internet modem. I will enjoy time with my family rather than be a slave to my job. I will enjoy my morning walk through the most beautiful city in Europe. I will buy a comic book t-shirt just for the fun of it. I will sing loudly and dance badly on the sofas as I dry the dishes. But, most importantly I will live. There are no more tomorrows. There are only a series of now’s, waiting to happen. I want to experience them and learn from them. But most importantly, I want to live them.
But, for me as a writer, the greatest thing about Dr. Seuss was that he never gave up. He started his career as a cartoonist in advertising. His first book (And to think) was submitted between 17-40 times (depending on the source) before he succeeded. The rumor was that he was on his way home to burn the manuscript when he bumped into an old college friend who helped him get it published.
I am happy to hear that the world has another Dr. Seuss story to read.