Today, as you may have gleaned already, would have been the 105th birthday of Theodor Seuss Geisel, otherwise known as "Dr. Seuss."
I don’t think a single American makes it through childhood without hearing or seeing a Dr. Seuss creation. The man was a timeless genius who gave us gems like "The Cat and the Hat," "Green Eggs and Ham," "The Lorax" and "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish."
In the world of children’s’ literature, Seuss was the whole enchilada, combining skilled drawings with comical verse written in a poetic meter commonly used by English writers.
But best of all, Seuss was committed to the imagination first and the moral of the story second -- if at all. "Kids can see a moral coming a mile off," he said once. Although his books were laden with his political views, they weren’t obvious to the reader and he never started a story with a moral in mind.
His stories were simple, silly and rooted in the imagination -- like most of childhood should be.
I want to remember this when I wonder if my kid is reading well enough for his age or cramping his schedule with another lesson. After all, our little people are really lucky if they aren’t forced to get serious too soon, and silly can be stimulating.
"Nonsense wakes up the brain cells," said the great Seuss.
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.
