The Little Word
by
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The little word heard all the noise and stopped its dancing. “I can only be a little word!” it said. “All of my letters are inside me. I thought they said something just the way they are. Why do all of you want to change me? Don’t you think I’m special the way I am?”
And the little word became very puzzled. It looked and looked at itself – even its inside letters. For a moment, it forgot how to dance.
Soon the blue sky missed the dancing of the little word. “Come out, little word!” it called, “I am so gray today and only you seem to be able to make my color bluer. I stretch over all the lands and seas, but I have never found a little word like you.”
And the raindrops fell around the little word. “Come out!” they called. “Dance with us today, little word, for we fall all over the earth in puddles of brown rich dirt. But you make us want to reflect the rainbow, and splash the ground with color!”
“But my ‘o’ is so round, and my ‘v’ is so bent,” said the little word.
“Don’t worry about the shape of your ‘o’ or the lines of your ‘v’!” cried the sky and the rain. “Use your round ‘o’ and your bent ‘v’ to be who you are! You were formed from a Heart that was joyful!”
“But what about the cloud, and the breeze, and the feather, and the balloon?” said the little word. “All of them wanted to change me!”
“When you make others happy they want so very, very much to give the same to you,” said the sky. “They don’t know that it would ruin you to straighten your lines. You see, they never learned to spell. You must grow in joy your own way, little word, in the echoes of the valley where everyone can hear. You were only spoken once. Ring out, little word, for you are special!”
“And the little word didn’t even stop to glance at its letters! It danced through the blue, blue sky, and played in the glittering rain. And the sky had never been bluer ... and the ground was covered with rainbows!
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About the Book
This is a delightfully affirming take-off on the beginning of the Gospel of John intended for young children who can spell. The story affirms that every individual is unique, special, and best contributes to the world by truly being oneself. The joyful little word must encounter four characters who wish to make the little word happier by suggesting changes in its letters. Despite their good intentions, none had learned to spell! Proposed distortions reveal that the little word is “Love.” Pep talks from the sky and raindrops restore the little word to playful dancing, and result in rainwater puddles that happily reflect the rainbow.
Susan Coler, BVM, masterfully expressed the story in music that beautifully illustrates and enhances the audio book narration. Each character is identified by its own motif. Each misspelling becomes a singular, grating distortion of the little word’s signature motif until it is happily resolved to be itself.
About the Author
Margaret Sheehan has worked in church settings with children for many years. She has a Masters degree in theology from Loyola University in Chicago, IL. She currently lives in Texas, sharing a house with her sister and brother-in-law.