Be Still and Listen: Quiet by Tomie de Paola

Spring is busy. Everything seems to be rushing toward summer. Baby foxes wiggle in their dens, eager to learn to run. Birds are flocking, singing on the wing.

Flowers are blooming. Bees are buzzing, and butterflies are trying out the flowers, looking for pollen and nectar. Rabbits are leaving their burrows and frogs are splashing into the pond. And a grandfather and two children are taking a walk.

"MY, OH, MY," SAID THE GRANDFATHER. "EVERYONE IS IN SUCH A HURRY."

"OUR DOG IS RUSHING AFTER THE BALL," SAID THE GIRL.

And Grandfather is right. The dragonflies are zipping over the the pond and the trees seem to be exercising their half-grown leaves in the breeze.

"LET'S NOT BE SO BUSY," SAID GRANDFATHER.

He leads them to a wooden bench where they sit, one on each side of him. Their dog stretches out beside them and falls asleep with a quiet sigh. Everything seems to grow still in the moment.

Quiet is what they hear. It's as still as the dragonfly perched on a cattail by the pond.

TO BE QUIET AND STILL IS A SPECIAL THING.

In his New York Times best-selling book, Quiet (Simon and Schuster, 2019), veteran author Tomie De Paola reminds us all that mindfulness, the focusing of the mind quietly in the moment, can be a part of being in the outdoors. Excitement, boisterous laughter, running and shouting has its place, but in a child's day, there is much to be said for learning to listen for the quiet spaces in life. In his trademark style of illustrations, De Paola's animal life is busy, some of it perhaps noisy, but he also suggest the quietness of a line of always busy ants, the soundless flight of the butterfly, and the stillness of resting birds, dreaming dogs and his signature doves. Says Booklist's starred review, "Simple, straightforward, and effective, this book gently encourages children to find comfort in their own quiet moments."

Share this one with Deborah Underwood's "many kinds of quiet" in her notable The Quiet Book