The Ceremonious Opening of THE BOX
It was a regular summer morning when, rather inconveniently, the doorbell rang. I looked down at the night shirt I was still wearing even though I’d been up for hours. No way was I answering the door in that. I looked at my daughter. She was also sporting jammies, but she could answer the door in her jammies, right? I mean she’s only 9. Apparently she disagreed.
So I ran to my room to find a sweater and sweat pants to throw on over top. I guess in the meantime my daughter took pity on me because I reached the door in time to hear retreating footsteps on the gravel and see my daughter staggering to lower a big box to the floor–a big brown box, a big brown box with the Owlkids logo on it. OMG it could only be the advance copies of Counting on Fall!!!
I didn’t bother to close the door. I started shouting incoherently and jumping up and down like I was deranged. Was it my imagination or did I also hear a van peel out of the driveway? No doubt the driver was freaked out by the realization that a crazy woman resided inside.
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| Big brown box in hallway complete with shoe clutter. |
Anyway, I admired the box and then…I went upstairs. What!? you’re thinking, right? I just left it there? Yes, that’s exactly what I did. Am I crazy? Maybe. But I’m also the type of kid who ate the best thing on her plate last. I’d draw out a good dessert with tiny little bites. As for the box, I needed to be in the right frame of mind, the right clothing, to savour the moment of opening it.
So it was an hour later when I was dressed, when I’d gathered my family, when we had the Ceremonious Opening of the Box.
It went like this:
- Be oh so careful with the blade of the scissors as you slice through the tape on top of the box.
- Gently peel back the box flaps and the white packing paper underneath.
- Gasp, ooh and ahh at the spectacular site of your books packed in the box, nested and cosy.
- Open the letter from the publisher’s assistant and smile.
- Then finally pick up a copy of the book you have worked on for months but have never physically touched until this moment.
- Ahh, brings a tear to the eye, no?
- Pass around the single copy to family members so we don’t put our grimy fingerprints on more than one copy at a time.
- Realize once again that this is the best gig in the world.
Ashley Barron, illustrator, you are a genius. Thank you OwlKids for the stellar match making and for assembling such a fantastic team to bring this book to bookstores everywhere. It’ll be officially on sale and available at/through bookstores everywhere on September 15, 2012.
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