A BEDTIME STORY FOR ALL AGES

As a child, I was taught to love books. My Mother began teaching me to spell and read long before I was old enough to go to school. I sat by her feet on the floor as she read poetry, Shakespeare and Charles Dickens. The list goes on and on. Much to my delight, she would also explain to me what the story was about in simple childlike words. And, usually at bedtime, she made a point of telling, or reading me a story. Needless to say, all of these efforts on my Mother's part were much appreciated and live on in me to this day!

There was one story that was particularly enjoyed by me; in fact my favorite children's story of all time. It was a small book that was written by Ben Ross Bernberg for his daughter in 1946, and had wonderful illustrations that were created by Dellwyn Cunningham. I loved looking at, and eventually reading, the book on a daily basis. I later learned that the book was published in 1947. Before I was born, I might add.

This wonderful book was titled, "What Am I? I'm a Churkendoose!"

The story was very impactful at that time and has, in my opinion, continued to be so throughout the years. You might even say that it has more impact today than ever.

You see, the story is about a little bird that is part chicken, part turkey, part duck and part goose. Put all that together and what do you have? A Churkendoose of course!

But, as people who are mixed have, and have had, problems throughout their lives because of it, the little Churkendoose had his share of problems, too. The other animals on the farm, especially the rooster, cast him out of the barnyard from the beginning. He was hatched from a huge egg, he had a turkey's body, a chicken's head, a goose bill and webbed feet like a duck! He only had one ear on the back of his head and he couldn't walk. But... He could really dance! And, he spoke in rhyme! I loved that about him!

All the animals in the barnyard thought he was ugly and too small to be any good for anything. They ran him out of the barnyard in spite of the fact that he tried to understand why he couldn't just be a Churkendoose, and that it was ok to not look like a chicken, or a duck, or a turkey, or a goose.

He found himself at the pond looking at his reflection in the water. He was very sad and he couldn't understand why the other fowl didn't like him or accept him. He realized that he didn't look like anyone else, but he didn't believe that he was ugly. He did realize though that he was "different".

While contemplating his situation, he heard a great ruckus in the barnyard. He immediately ran back to see what was causing all of the noise. All the farm birds, including the rooster, were running all over the place quacking, clucking, honking, gobbling and making terrible noises because there was a fox chasing them. The fox was determined to catch one of them for his dinner.

When the little Churkendoose appeared and the fox saw him, he was so frightened that he ran backwards to get away. Then, instead of being cast out, the other animals saw him as their hero.

However, the Churkendoose wasn't so eager to become instant friends. He told them that they had caused him to cry before, and now they were calling him their hero because he chased the fox away. He asked them if they couldn't just like him and accept him for himself?

Once the animals thought about it, they decided that it was ok to be different, and they did accept him just as he was. He taught them to dance, and they taught him how to swim and do things they could do. They all helped each other and became real friends in the end.

This book teaches children to be accepting and to appreciate others for who they are, not how they look or where they come from. I learned not to judge others on their appearance, or their background, but to look for the good in them, and to always be the first person to say hello to a new student, or to lend a helping hand when someone needed it.

I have carried those lessons with me throughout my life and I know other children will learn and grow from this story as well. In todays society, with so much diversity, this lesson is possibly more important today than it was then. We must apply these principles in our lives every day. We must realize that when someone is different it simply means that we have an opportunity to learn from them, and to share our knowledge, customs, etc. with them as well.

Let us help one another. Let us teach one another. And, let us accept one another; not in spite of our differences, but because of them.

I will always remember my favorite bedtime story and the lessons I learned from it, and will pass it down to my children and then to my grandchildren. As the saying goes, "Every journey begins with a first step." Perhaps, this is your opportunity to do just that.