I was introduced to Sybil by Judy Moody. If you haven’t heard of her it’s probably because you’re not eight years old or a teacher of eight-year-olds. Judy is a character in a series of children’s books by Megan McDonald. Judy is a precocious, often bratty, youngster who is always getting in trouble.
My favorite in the series is “Judy Moody Declares Independence” because it illuminates Revolutionary War time history for young children while teaching them to earn independence by being responsible and dependable.
In short, Judy and her family visit Boston and take in the city’s rich history by walking the Freedom Trail, learning about the Boston Tea Party and visiting the Old North Church. She also learns about Sybil Ludington, who is known as the female Paul Revere.
Revere is a certainly an iconic figure in the lore of the revolution. But Sybil made Paul’s ride look like a Sunday stroll around Walden Pond. In 1777, the Redcoats were moving in on Sybil’s hometown of Danbury, Connecticut. Her father, a colonel in the Continental Army, dispatched his 16-year-old daughter to ride to the neighboring towns to rouse the militia to come Danbury’s aide. She rode 40 miles through the rain-soaked night, more than twice as far as Ol’ Paul. The militia was too late to save Danbury, but the British were soon repelled in the battle of Ridgefield.
In the book, Judy puts her lessons into practice. She declares independence from her parents until she is given more freedom. Her parents are reluctant to meet her demands unless she can prove she can be more responsible. Her chance arrives one day when she gets off the school bus without her little brother who had fallen asleep on the ride home. Judy then channels her inner Sybil Ludington and hops on her bike to chase down the bus and retrieve her brother.
I was wondering what it would be like for Sarah, Judy, and Sybil to hang out and swap stories. Perhaps it went something like this:
Sarah: Sybil, Judy. So nice to meetcha! Aren’t you two a couple of mavericks?!
Judy: Actually, I’m just a third-grader.
Sybil: Mrs. Palin, with all due respect, it sounds like you need to relearn your history.
Judy: Or at least read my book!
Sarah: Oh aren’t you two cute! And funny too. A couple of whippersnappers. I know my history. There were a lot of British soldiers living in Boston and Paul Revere was warning them to get the H.E. double-toothpicks outta there by firing shots and ringing those bells!
Judy: He rang bells? Wow. Sybil, did you ring any bells on your ride?
Sybil: No Ms. Moody, I didn’t. But I did ride long enough to rally 400 militiamen to prepare for battle.
Sarah: That’s so true! Good job. You did so much to preserve our freedom. America is proud of you.
Judy: Um, I don’t think we had our freedom yet.
Sarah: Technically we did. We declared it in 1775. So even though the war was not over, we were free. Sybil and all those tough soldiers were really just keeping the British from taking away our freedom.
Sybil: Huh? Anyway, America doesn’t really know about me. Mr. Revere gets all the credit.
Judy: That’s stupid. Boys get all the credit.
Sarah: Tell me about it. Boys get the credit, and girls get ridiculed for their mistakes.
Sybil: But boys make mistakes, mispronounce words, get facts wrong, and forget things too.
Sarah: You betcha! Sometimes they forget their daughter’s names and ages. Or how many states there are. Or how to pronounce ‘corpsman’.
Judy: That’s silly! What idiot would do that?
Sybil: No. That person just made simple mistakes. Mistakes are part of being human. The Declaration of Independence says all men are created equal. Equality is the foundation that every American’s race, beliefs, and orientations are built upon. We all make mistakes equally.
Sarah: Here, Here!
Judy: My parents say that we should try to learn from our mistakes.
Sarah: That’s what I tell my daughter Bristol all the time.
Sybil: My parents said the same thing. I think the foolish person is the person who doesn’t learn from their mistakes.
Judy: And so are the people who insult someone they’ve never met because of their mistakes.
Sarah: Well said, Judy. I think it’s time we wrapped this up. Would you two like to come out to Alaska for an Independence Day BBQ? I think it’s the greatest of our 57 states!
No comments:
Post a Comment