Sebastian's reading continues to amaze and delight us - he loves Roald Dahl, has developed a fascination with the Titanic through several nonfiction books, and has fallen deep into the Beverly Cleary universe - Ralph the mouse, Henry Huggins, Ramona Quimby. For those who might not remember, or never knew, Beverly Cleary lived in Portland, and all her books are set here in our city. I don't think it made an impression on me when I was younger and reading the series, but it's so cool to read with Sebastian, or to hear him report, on local sights and events in the books. Cleary describes the beauty of seeing Mt. Hood on a clear summer day; Henry goes fishing for salmon in the local river; it's often drizzling in November; etc. It's so fun for Sebastian to be reading these books that are both famous and about the regular trials and tribulations of everyday children, here in Portland.
The other thing that is really striking to me as a parent in this particular time is the freedom of the children in the Portland of then. The kindergarteners walk by themselves to school and back home - Ramona finds herself in trouble one day when she skips school and hides in the yard, with nary a parent or teacher around to notice. Henry takes the bus across the city by himself, after dark, when he's 10 years old - he also brings home random stray animals and gets a paper delivery route and in general lives a life set apart from his parents. I don't want to romanticize it too much, but there's definitely a freedom and independence there that is no longer available to our children.
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