We're still slowly working our way through Little Pilgrim's Progress
along with the rest of our Morning Stack. Yesterday, I read Chapter 57: The Man with the Straws. The children drew picture narrations, as I was reading, like they usually do.
The reading was particularly poignant. In this chapter, Christiana, her siblings, and friend, Mercy, have stopped at the house of the Interpreter. After the children have all rested, the Interpreter takes them through his house to show them some special things.
One of them was a room featuring the man with straws:
After this, the old man brought his little visitors into a dull, dark room, where a miserable-looking man was working busily. The floor of the room was covered with straws and sticks, and the man held a rake in his hand, with which he was collecting all the rubbish into a heap. He did not look up when the Interpreter opened the door, and he seemed to care for nothing but his sticks and straws.
"What is he collecting them for?" asked Matthew. "He thinks they are very precious," replied the Interpreter. "He has been serving the Wicked Prince for a long time, and he believes that some day, in the midst of these useless straws, he will find a wonderful treasure. The King is sorry for him and every day He sends a messenger to offer him a golden crown instead of straws." (176)
We pondered the image for a few moments, and the girls began to make a drawing of something they had heard in the reading. The boys drew, too, but they focused on things not related to the reading. That was ok with me, as they had already given great verbal narrations.
Blue, the cat, thinks these drawings offer the best seat in the house:
Angels holding golden crowns and smiling:
Ben drew Larry Boy and the Angry Eyebrow. Jacob's drawing can't be found:
I keep our 1891 version of Pilgrim's Progress in our morning stack so I can read portions of text that match our Little Pilgrim's Progress reading, or to show the beautiful pen and ink illustrations (I make a point of not showing the corresponding illustration before our reading as it may interfere with the younger children's drawings. I want them to be able to imagine for themselves the part of the reading that most impresses them):
By the way, I've found an abundant supply of these beautiful copies of Pilgrim's Progress in used and out-of-print bookstores. My copy was only $20.
Here's the man with straws in our 1891 copy:
After the reading and the time of drawing, I was thrilled with our discussion about the man with straws.
I continue to marvel at how good books, read slowly and lived with over time, impact the children's hearts and mind. They really are being nourished daily with "loving, right, and noble ideas" (Charlotte Mason, Parents and Children Vol. II, 228). It gives me such joy to be a part of that process!
