As I wrote in one of my first blog entries, my childhood was full of travel. It was also full of books. It’s only recently that I’ve realized that most of my childhood heroes were adventurers…
…Paddington Bear, Curious George, Mary from The Secret Garden, Milo from The Phantom Tollbooth, Max from Where the Wild Things Are, Harold and the Purple Crayon, Madeline, The Little House, Make Way for Ducklings, Miss Rumphius, Babar, Frog and Toad, George and Martha, Jackie Piper and Puff, Ping…
I had some heroes who didn’t travel, but even their stories were travel-related. The Box Car Children lived on a train, even though it never moved. And Mr. Popper may not have traveled, but his penguins did. And, I don’t remember the story clearly enough, but I have a distinct sense that Jo from Little Women was a traveler, even if only in her heart.
My first big international trip was to England with my mom, sister and aunt. I wasn’t necessarily reminded of any books I’d read until we were on the London Underground, and I set eyes on Paddington Station. Suddenly all the Paddington Bear stories I had read as a kid came back to me, as if I was sprinkled with magical fairy dust, gifted with all the images from the books.
From that moment on, I advocated for afternoon tea and marmalade each and every day of our trip, a tradition I continue to relish and associate with Paddington and that trip, to this day.
This year my sister and I took her kids to England. And, we missed our mom a lot! But I know she was smiling down on us as we took the kids to see Paddington Station, and to have high tea with marmalade.