Bed and Breakfast Children's Story, Antonia
Hello Adventurers,
I am sorry to say that my trip to Nepal this fall with five trekkers has been
canceled due to the extenuating world circumstance. The days have been hard
for everyone. It is especially difficult to cancel our trip during a time
when it would be so glorious to escape to the high Himalayas and forget about
everything except ones relationship with nature. It is always strange to be
reacquainted with the newspaper after a long trek. Oh well. Politics in
Nepal haven't been so great either. Thus is life.
We have rescheduled our trip for spring 2002 (March-May). The Of Global
Interest Random Acts of Kindness Fund ($407 to date) will also wait to be
spent at that time. Sean Swarner is planning to climb Mt. Everest
(www.cancerclimber.org). I am organizing two base camp support team treks as
part of this expedition. Let me know if you would like to go. I will write
more about the spring 2002 trip in my next Adventure Journal.
I hope you are doing well. To lighten the burden of our nation's crisis, I
am sending the story of Antonia. I wrote it a few nights ago when I couldn't
sleep. It's a children's story about a young person who is very special to
me. I met Antonia with her mother at one of my Nepal talks a few months ago.
While Antonia was here, she fell in love with my little house. She is 7.
Since I also operate a bed and breakfast, she wanted to stay one night. The
following is the text (only words no pictures) from the artist's book I
created with the pictures Antonia's mother gave me. Karin, a long time
friend, encouraged me to send it to you.
Antonia, Her Friend, Lilly, and Her Surrogate Aunt, Heather
A Slumber Party at the Eighth Street Trekkers Lodge Bed and Breakfast
A TRUE STORY
(Antonia is 7, Lilly is 8 and Heather is 35.)
Antonia learned that Heather offered an overnight child care service at the
little bed and breakfast on the corner of Eighth and Washington Streets in
Ann Arbor. Since it was a little bit expensive, she decided to earn the
money ALL BY HERSELF to pay for her and her good friend, Lilly, to stay one
night at the Trekkers Lodge B&B.
WHEN Antonia and Lilly arrived, they greeted Heather and made themselves at
home in the guest room at the Lodge. Their luggage included one stuffed
puppy dog, a baby doll and blanket for the baby, their swim suits, a violin,
a hat and two slumber party suitcases.
To earn the money to stay at the B&B, Antonia started her own company. She
called it Happy Birthday Hula Hoop. (Think of her the next time your friend
has his/her next birthday.) For $6 ($1 goes to charity) Antonia will play
Happy Birthday on the violin while whirling a Hula Hoop! Antonia also sold
rhubarb from her garden, earned some money at the fair, and her grandma even
gave her a few dollars for her birthday. Finally after several months of
hard work, Antonia called Heather at the Lodge. "I would like to make a
reservation for my friend Lilly and me to stay at the Eighth Street Trekkers
Lodge Bed and Breakfast," she said.
While at the Trekkers Lodge, Antonia and Lilly played and played. First they
had a facial using the Beauty Queen Mask recipe (egg yolk, honey, almond oil,
and vitamin E oil). After the facial and after a palm reading session they
put a jigsaw puzzle together. It was a picture of Ernie and Burt.
Antonia and Lilly's favorite thing to do at the Trekkers' Lodge was to play
in the attic. They played in the attic for hours.
Then Antonia came down wearing Heather's grandmother's jewelry collection.
Antonia was dripping with sparkles and luxurious gems. She was beautiful!
There were many things to look at and play with in the attic at the Trekkers'
Lodge. Antonia and Lilly even pondered the world's mountains, streams,
rivers, prairies, lakes, cities, deserts, valleys, rain forests and oceans
while exploring the rock garden in the attic.
Later, after pizza in the living room and a jazz session playing African
drums, Antonia and Lilly took a dip in the Mermaid BathTub. (Heather was
wondering why they had brought their suits.) They swam with the bubbles, the
seashells and the funny plastic seaweed for hours. They were two mermaids in
a mini ocean!
Then after drying off and after a few hours playing in the dollhouse and
after baking Heather's favorite cookies, oatmeal chocolate chip, Antonia and
Lilly were back in the attic. There was a lot to play with up there. To get
to the attic Antonia and Lilly had to climb the ladder that pulled down from
the ceiling in the room of the Lodge that Heather called the Everything's Art
Gallery.
Before they went to bed and after the disco music, dancing and laser light
show (which even had Frederika the CAT dancing), Antonia and Lilly and
Heather drew drawings on their hands with henna powder from Nepal. Heather
said many women in Nepal and other parts of the world decorate their hands
and feet with it. After it dries and is washed off, it leaves an
orangeish-red stain that lasts a week. Antonia drew a butterfly on her hand.
Lilly drew the sun on her hand. And Heather drew a big design on her hand.
The next morning after drawing pictures and playing in the attic and
rearranging the furniture in the dollhouse, the three friends, Antonia, Lilly
and Heather, ate a big breakfast at the dinning room table. They ate crepes
which are thin, big pancakes with butter, powdered sugar, maple syrup,
strawberry jam, vanilla yogurt, and pecan pieces. (Everything was sticky
after that.) The three of them talked about food, love and romance, and best
friends. Everyone had a good time at the slumber party!
Brought to You by :
Happy Birthday Hula Hoop
AND
Overnight Child Care Surrogate Aunt Slumber Parties
An Additional Service at
The Eighth Street Trekkers Lodge Bed and Breakfast
A Division of
OF Global Interest LLC
Serving Your Need to Experience the World
Heather O'Neal
P.S. Antonia gave the Of Global Interest Random Acts of Kindness Fund $7.
She would like me to give a blanket to a poor family in Nepal.
P.P.S. When I asked Antonia what she is saving her money for now, she said,
"A trip to Nepal!"
P.P.P.S. After writing this story, I thought even the most evil person in
the world would have to smile. If only all of us could look each other in
the eye with integrity and understanding and fascination. We CAN live
together. Thank you for reading.
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