AJ and I made a trek to the bookstore this afternoon in an attempt to escape the heat, and picked up, among other things, a copy of Leo Lionni�s The Alphabet Tree. I read a lot of Lionni�s books as a child and I�ve read many with AJ as well, but I don�t think I�ve ever come across this one before. The Alphabet Tree looks just like any other tree in the beginning, but it is a tree with history, as we soon learn. Once it was inhabited by letters, on on each leaf. But a windstorm blew many of them away. So, with the help of a friendly bug, they banded together and made words. These made them stronger, able to withstand the wind. A caterpillar came along and showed them how to say things with meaning and they made sentences. The caterpillar praised their work, but urged them to say �something important.� After some deliberation, the letters came up with the perfect thing to say: �Peace on earth and goodwill to all men.� After they�d written that sentence, the caterpillar urged the letters to climb on his back. �Where are you taking us?� They asked. �To the President,� the caterpillar replies.

The story hit home for me and for AJ for different reasons. For myself, it was the perfect message after reading today�s newspaper. For AJ, however, it tapped into some kind of essential mythology.

Since he was a baby, AJ has had a fascination with alphabets in trees. There are a surprising number of stories and songs which have letters in trees. AJ�s favorite was Chicka-chicka boom-boom. But he also loves a song by Ralph�s World that begins, �ABCDEFG! Seven monkeys up in a tree.� While the alphabet in the song is incidental to both tree and monkeys, the combination of tree and letters is tantalizing to him. AJ has several sets of foam letters of varying sizes which regularly reenact various scenarios of alphabets climbing trees or jumping out of them. The alphabet has always been personified for AJ.

Tonight I read The Alphabet Tree for AJ�s first bedtime story. I usually read two or three, depending on length. But AJ was so enamored with The Alphabet Tree that he didn�t want to read anything else. He clutched the book to his chest and carefully tucked it into bed next to him. I can hear him now in his room still talking and singing about the book. First he sang a song to the tune of �The Farmer in the Dell�

The Alphabet Tree,
The Alphabet Tree,
I love the Alphabet,
The Alphabet Tree!

Then he attempted to read the book, but it is far too dark, in his room, so he had to make up the story. Then he began acting out the story with his stuffed animals � his beloved caterpillar was a major player.

I love watching AJ try to internalize his books. He loves to lose himself in a story the same way I do, although in his case the stories carry over into his real life in a much more concrete manner. At four he has already discovered that books contain new worlds. If I do nothing else right as a parent, I�ll always be happy about that.

[Second entry today. Click back to read about AJ's brief flirtation with pantslessness]

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