Since October's blog posts were quite bleak in number, the worst month yet in fact, I have decided, quite nervously, to commit to publish a post every day, well every week-day during the month of November. I was originally going to participate in National Blog Post Month, NaBloPoMo, on BlogHer- but I decided I would probably rarely follow the prompts, and if I did, it wouldn't be on the right day. Instead, I'm just going to do my own thing and hold myself accountable to posting every.single.day. This means there might be some interesting, shall we say, posts. Please bear with me.
Today I chose to tackle yesterday's prompt: Who is your favorite character of all time?
This is an easy one, which is why I decided to take the prompt- Laura Ingalls Wilder. Lucy Montgomery's Anne Shirley was a close second. Anne's vivid imagination and spunk, shall we say, are always endearing, entertaining, and inspiring no matter what age, or life circumstance. But as I knew Anne first through the movies (and later the books) and Laura only through her books, I feel I know Laura better. Let's disregard the fact that she is a real life person, I am sure she embellished her character a bit for the series. Laura has fascinated and influenced me since I first read her books nearly 20 years ago, and thus rightly earns the title of my absolute favorite character of all time.
I am sure it was Laura (with the help of Anne) who started my love of history early in my childhood. This manifested itself first by playing "Pioneer Barbie" (picture a Barbie, and Ken of course, in a home-made covered wagon traveling across the prairie, or play room, with their horses, children, and all their worldly goods). This was followed by Pioneer American Girl who sat in her rocking chair, with her sunbonnet on, by her imaginary wood-burning stove. Also somewhere in there was the Laura Ingalls Wilder Halloween costume as well as a family road trip to DeSmet South Dakota and many of the Little House on the Prairie locations. My childhood was filled with imitations, dreams, and learnings about all things Laura Ingalls Wilder.
It was that early fascination with history, and specifically anything "pioneer" or "1800s" that led to many AP history classes and a declared History major in college. Those history classes were the perfect foundation for my first Constitution course, which I am sure is the reason I became a Political Science major, and thus an intern in DC, followed naturally by my current job with the Minnesota Legislature. So really I can thank Laura for helping me find something I love, and then find a way to turn that into something I want to do with my life. A little dramatic and over simplified, but true nonetheless.
And don't even get me started on the great lessons and morals taught in the books: responsibility, sacrifice, integrity, and discipline, among others, are all valued highly in the stories Laura tells, making her books important and a worth-while read to not only children, but adults as well.
very nicely said.
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