Mason’s Musings April 28th, 2023

Hello, hello everyone! Welcome back to this wet and cloudy week that we’ve been having. I hope you’re all staying dry and snuggling up with your pets (or just some blankets) and getting some relaxing reading time. Speaking of reading, since it’s still poetry month I’ve got a recommendation for all our patrons that love poetry.

We have a wonderful book here at the library called The Blacker the Berry by Joyce Carol Thomas in our junior non-fiction section. The book shows strong, beautiful, young African American children finding pride and a love of their ranging skin tones and physical attributes. The illustrations throughout the book show various types of African Americans talking about how they’ve learned to love their features. The illustrations are visually stunning and only enhance the message that the poems convey. It also talks about loving and understanding both sides of black heritage and their cultural background. Here is one of my personal favorites from the book:

“Color Struck”

Our hair is curly black, braided brown

and wavy red

Our lips are as luscious as ripe berries

As slim as a painter’s thin line

And as generous as

Plump plums

We are color struck

The way an artist strikes

His canvas with his brush of many hues

Look closely at these mirrors

These palettes of skin

Each color is rich

In its own right

We come in all shades

Night, sun bright

Color thick

Color slight

Color struck

I feel this is a great book for anyone who feels self-conscious about their skin or facial features. Sometimes we are so hard on ourselves that it’s difficult to remind our brains that we are deserving of love, no matter the color of our skin or the shape of our face. I believe The Blacker the Berry is just the kind of reminder we need.

I truly hope you all have a great week ahead and remember to treat yourself with the kindness you deserve!

Library Events 4/28 – 5/6:

Wednesday May 3rd – Children’s Hour with Ms. Katie! Bring the little ones for story-time with Ms. Katie. Stories, songs, activities, and crafts are all part of the fun. Children’s Hour starts at 10:00 AM and occurs every Wednesday of each month (excluding January and August).

Saturday May 6th – Drop by any time between 11:00 AM- 1:00 PM every first Saturday of the month and have fun creating our themed crafts! May’s craft is creating Mother’s Day cards!