In this week’s newsletter, as it’s the first of the month, we focus on our new June 2019 issue. Click the links to read some of our brand new content, and scroll down for contest and other news, plus the latest from our bloggers. Cover: “Flight Through the Cosmos,” photograph by Hannah Parker, 13 In this week’s newsletter, as it’s the first of the month, we focus on our new June 2019 issue. Innocent Yet Dire Words by Isabel Swain A book lover dreaming of a better life uses poetry to cope The Place Where It Isn’t by Eliana Schaffer One girl’s quest for perfection Possibility by Vandana Ravi A magical place of serenity and beauty comes to life in a daydream Plus–poetry, a portfolio of Hannah Parker’s photographs, a story sequence, Letters to the Editor, and our June 2019 Honor Roll Letter from the Editor, June 2019 This is an issue about potential, possibility, and change. In Isabel Swain’s story “Innocent but Dire Words,” a young poet dreams of a better future for herself, while in Vandana Ravi’s short story, a girl dreams of simply another place. In Grace Jiang’s poems, nature comes to life again, after its seasonal death and hibernation, and in Andrew Wu’s story sequence “Nature in my Eyes,” nature changes in our eyes, as we attempt to see it from the angles and experiences of different creatures. Change is inevitable: we change, the world changes, time moves along. And, in the spaces between, in the time when it feels as if nothing is changing, we dream of the change that might happen. And yet when that change finally does occur—when yet again the rose blooms—it still feels miraculous. After reading this issue, I hope you will feel inspired to think and write about change—in the world or in you, past or future, real or imagined. Letters: We love to hear from our readers. Please post a comment on our website or write to us via Submittable or editor@stonesoup.com. Your letter might be published on our occasional Letters to the Editor page. Subscribers: read the new issue here! Contests and partnership news Contest: Write a Book! Start planning for our summer contest: book-length writing in all forms and genres by kids aged 14 and under (we have extended our usual age limit for this contest). The deadline for entries is August 15th, so you have the whole summer to work on perfecting your book, whether it is a novel, a collection of poetry or short stories, a memoir, or other prose. There will be three placed winners, and we will publish all three winning books in various forms. Visit our contest page and Submittable entry page for full details. Stone Soup’s books are getting some great reviews! Stone Soup joined LibraryThing a few months ago, and our books have been getting some great reviews from other members at LibraryThing and also on their own blogs. Visit our book pages and see what other readers are saying–and add your comments! Also, we have joined Goodreads! Are you on that social network? Please send a friend request our way! We also want to encourage you to leave a review any of the Stone Soup books you’ve read, like an Annual or a Stone Soup Book of . . . We’ve compiled a list of the ones listed on Goodreads here.Submit your creative work to Stone Soup Highlights from the past week online Don’t miss the latest content from our Book Reviewers and Young Bloggers at Stonesoup.com. “Have you ever wondered about the clothes you wear? Where they come from and what happens to them when you no longer need them? Recently, I got very interested in learning more about clothes. It all started when I went with my mother to a clothing donation box in the parking lot of a small mall near our home.” Read the rest of Mahati’s fascinating blog post about the life cycle of clothes here. Remember Abigail’s piece about Polish traditions for spring? Well, she’s back this week, this time in Japan! Read about Hanami, the cherry blossom festival, and more in the blog post “Japanese Traditions for Spring.” Shop in the Stone Soup Store Stone Soup’s advisors: Abby Austin, Mike Axelrod, Annabelle Baird, Jem Burch, Evelyn Chen, Juliet Fraser, Zoe Hall, Montanna Harling, Alicia & Joe Havilland, Lara Katz, Rebecca Kilroy, Christine Leishman, Julie Minnis, Jessica Opolko, Tara Prakash, Denise Prata, Logan Roberts, Emily Tarco, Rebecca Ramos Velasquez, Susan Wilky.
Stone Soup Magazine for young readers, writers, and artists
Japanese Traditions for Spring
Spring is a time for new life. Japan demonstrates this through their Hanami festival and their story of Amaterasu and Ame-No-Uzume. Hanami Hanami in Japan is a festival celebrating the blooming of cherry blossoms, harkening the arrival of spring. The festival is a time for people to assemble and picnic under the trees. They eat wagashi, traditional Japanese sweets. Some of these sweets are Daifuku, which is made from sweet rice flour that surrounds red bean paste, and Yokan, a jellied confectionery made from red or white beans, sugar, and agar, which is a type of gelatin. A traditional beverage is Sakura tea, which is tea made from cherry blossoms. Seasonally decorated teaware is also used. The festivities usually last all day and into the night. The festival dates vary by location and year because the trees blossom at different rates. Ueno Park and Yoyogi Park in Tokyo are popular spots for cherry blossom viewing. Washington D.C. is also famous for its cherry blossom festivities. Here is a link to the National Park Service’s page on cherry blossom festivals: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/cherryblossom/index.htm Ever since the Heian Period, which lasted from 794-1185, the aristocracy has given parties to view blossoming flowers. In the Azuchi Momoyama Period, which lasted from 1568-1600, viewing parties spread in popularity to the remaining population. Short plays were performed, and women would wear brightly colored kimonos. With the dawn of the age of technology, “Sakura Forecasts” were broadcasted online and on television. Today, pink dots cover maps of Japan showing where the Cherry Blossoms are. These forecasts are usually followed by information on finding the best viewing points, the areas where the seasons have finished, and where the seasons have begun. Amaterasu and Ame-no-Uzume Ame-no-Uzume or Uzume is the Shinto goddess of joy, happiness, and good health. She danced to bring the goddess of the sun, Amaterasu, back from where she was grieving. Amaterasu was hiding because her brutish brother grew jealous of her beauty and popularity and went on a rampage, killing one of Amaterasu’s sacred animals. Amaterasu felt so violated and betrayed that she ran away and hid. However, Uzume’s dancing filled Amaterasu with revelry and good humor, dissipating her grief and ensuring the return of spring and sunshine bringing life and fertility. This myth is said to be symbolism for the return of spring after a long, cold winter. Conclusion Hanami is the Japanese festival thrown for the blossoming of cherry trees. Families and friends gather underneath the beautiful flowers to enjoy the sights and the companionship. They eat traditional Japanese wagashi and drink tea made from cherry blossoms. One of the traditional stories told in Japan is that of Uzume and Amaterasu. Uzume danced to bring Amaterasu out from grieving. This story is symbolism for the return of spring, sunshine, and life. I highly encourage checking out cherry blossom festivals. Who knows, you might have one near you!
From Rags to Blankets: The Life Cycle of Clothes
Have you ever wondered about the clothes you wear? Where they come from and what happens to them when you no longer need them? Recently, I got very interested in learning more about clothes. It all started when I went with my mother to a clothing donation box in the parking lot of a small mall near our home. Every few months, she collects all our unwanted clothes in a bag and drops them off into a big box. During this trip, for the first time, I wondered what happens to all the clothes that are deposited into the box. I asked a lot of questions and found many interesting answers. Read on to find out more about the life cycle of clothes and why unwanted clothes never belong in the trash! Clothes are made from two main sources: natural and artificial. Natural sources are plant fibers like cotton, jute, bamboo, and rubber. Animal sources include silk, hide, wool, feathers and fur. Human researchers have also invented fibers such as nylon and polyester using chemicals in the lab. These are artificial fibers and are often used to make light, waterproof clothing such as sportswear and bathing suits. All these fibers require plenty of water, land and other natural resources to make. Clothing is usually made in developing countries because it is cheaper to make them there. Once the clothes are made, they get shipped to all over the world. This is how clothes get to stores near you! Once you buy a piece of clothing, several things to happen to it: ● You may not like it ● It could become well worn and even raggedy ● You could outgrow it ● It could get out of season, for example, shorts in winter and jackets in summer. ● You wash it the wrong way and it shrinks! Once you no longer need a piece of clothing: ● If it is in a good condition, it could be handed down ● You could drop it off in a donation or charity box ● You could sell it at a second-hand store ● You could throw it in the garbage can Every year, each one of us throws about 70 lbs of clothing in the trash. One pound is equal to about three tee-shirts, nine pieces of kids clothes, and one pair of shoes. These trashed clothes end up in the landfill which is a large area where the trash in buried. By throwing old clothes in the trash, it pollutes the environment and it is a waste of natural resources that went into making them. So, it is better to recycle clothes, even if they are torn and raggedy. But when we think of recycling we only think of bottles, paper and cans. Not clothes! Clothes cannot even be thrown in the regular recycling bin! So, what do we do? Even with our clothes we can practice “reduce, reuse, recycle.” If clothes become too worn out to be handed down or sold, they can get dropped off at a donation box. Companies that recycle clothes provide these boxes at many convenient locations such as parking lots, malls etc. From here, the clothes get sorted according to their condition. Many clothes are sold back to developing countries. A city called Panipat in India in nicknamed “cast-off capital” of the world. In these places: ● Ships and trucks bring in recycled clothes from all over the world ● They are sorted into reds, blues, greens and blacks, and also according to their fiber ● Workers remove zippers, buttons and bales with small knives ● Machines shred the clothes into smaller pieces and remove the fibers to make yarn. Some of the pieces are used to stuff couches and cushions. ● The yarn is used to make blankets that are sold at a very low cost. After big disasters like tsunami, earthquake or hurricane, families lose everything of theirs. These blankets are given to keep them safe and warm. This is a much better use of our torn clothes. Now, I have learned that the life cycle of clothes does not end in a trash can. It can continue to live as a warm blanket for someone in a faraway place who has lost everything. So next time I buy a new piece of clothing, I will first ask myself if it looks good on me. Then, “how can I make it look good on my planet?” This is called sustainability and we can do this as kids too!
