Meta-Mentoring

Of Virtues and Reading and Rudyard Kipling

Ever a strong believer in the value of reading to a child, Tessa took half an hour off her " busy 25-hour day" and pulled an old copy of William J. Bennett's Book of Virtues (one of our family's prized possessions) to read to our son.

Together they opened the book and began soaking up "How the Camel Got His Hump" by Rudyard Kipling. It starts:

"NOW this is the next tale, and it tells how the Camel got his big hump.

In the beginning of years, when the world was so new and all, and the Animals were just beginning to work for Man, there was a Camel, and he lived in the middle of a Howling Desert because he did not want to work; and besides, he was a Howler himself. So he ate sticks and thorns and tamarisks and milkweed and prickles, most 'scruciating idle; and when anybody spoke to him he said 'Humph!' Just 'Humph!' and no more."

Read the rest of the tale here.

As to why this tale was classified under Work initially escaped me. If I had my way, I would have classified that under Foresight and Resourcefulness. I'm a visual learner, so perhaps this could explain it.

But I'm just one voice, so Work it is about.

Labels: fatherhood, reading, Rudyard Kipling

posted by Joel @ 3:20 PM