Hello all!

My dear friends Grace and Katherine Avender are having an Anne of Green Gables blog party these last few days of July! I highly recommend that you go check out their blog, Maidens of Green Gables. They have loads of fun posts!

Button for the party :)

I wasn't sure if I would be able to participate, but then on a whim I dug out my DVD of Anne of Green Gables (the SE version, you know) yesterday. As I was re-watching this favorite, I started compiling a list of "lessons" that I've learned from my favorite literary heroine.




*pats poor Anne awkwardly*


1. "Scrapes" are life's entertaining

How many times have we messed up and then laughed afterwards?

It took me quite a ways to get to the stage when I could laugh at my silly mistakes without dying of embarrassment.



But, especially in my blogging experience, "scrapes" make for the best stories. Sharing those embarrassing mistakes really helped me to grow as a person.


2. Poetry is to be appreciated

I never really understood the power of poetry, or poetry as an art form, until I first watched Sullivan's Entertainment version of Anne of Green Gables. To this day, "The Lady of Shalott" remains one of my favorite epic poems.

By the way, you can see an actual dramatic recreation of Tennyson's masterpiece (not one marred by a leaky dinghy) in the video below:



3. Love may take you unawares

I think Anne and Gilbert's romance is one of the most well done in literary history because of it's realism. Let's be quite honest, sometimes the girl hasn't a clue what a perfect guy for her looks like. It should be an ultimate reminder that God is the only perfect matchmaker :).




4. Always label things - especially old bottles of something

Getting drunk on currant wine is not an experience that I wish to partake in. Nor do I really want liniment in my cakes. Smells and visuals don't always help either. So for the sake of yourself and others, label things.



5. Always keep a bosum friend

Whether we admit it or not, every woman needs a sister. Not necessarily a natural born sister, but a soul sister - one that can understand, scold, and love unconditionally. The ones that we spill to. The ones that we can let our hair down and be the craziest versions of ourselves with.

Every Anne needs a Diana. Like Anne, I never had a natural sister....much to my eternal chagrin. But, I was blessed with many close friendships with other girls and women. While I consider many fellow Catholic women my "sisters" (the quotes are quite necessary), there is only one that has Diana's role in my life. And I'm sure you know who that is. *winks*




6. It's okay to a little....unconventional

What town would be half interesting if we didn't have odd characters running about?

Would Anne be so lovable if she didn't have her crazy quirks?

I highly doubt both.

I dare say, as a rather odd person myself, that while you may not have a score of friends trailing behind you, someone will like you for being yourself.


7. Thrilling names lift up the ordinary

A pond can never be a pond when it is the "Lake of Shining Waters." Am I right?

I've always been a lover of names, but whether Anne instilled that into me....I will never know. Surely, the fact that I believe that names with a meaning make it so much more special can only come from our starry-eyed heroine.


8. Appreciate the beauty of the surroundings

A little bird song lightens the soul. The sight of tall mountains inspires us to go higher. The wide expanse of the ocean reminds us of our littleness.

God uses beauty of nature to prod us little humans, if we can only see it. I think Anne certainly knew that.


9. Spelling really does matter




That "E" makes all the difference sometimes. You wouldn't think that adding or dropping a little letter like that one would, but it does!

Take for example:

Catherine Hawthorn vs. Catherine Hawthorne

I actually have a small irritation when people add the "e" at the end of Hawthorn. While I realize that the actual surname has an "e" at the end, I actually took this name from the actual tree, which doesn't have the "e". With the fact that "Catherine" has an "e" on the end, the other "e" just seems too extra.


10. Sometimes you just need to fill the silence.

While silence can be great from a spiritual sense, there are certain times when silence can be maddening. Like when you're trying to soothe an awkward situation over. Or you're so nervous that it must spill out before spinning your brain.

And that concludes the post!



And now I wish to hear from you! What lessons have you learned from Anne Shirley? Which is your favorite version of Anne's story - the books, the Sullivan Movies, or the mini-series Green Gables Fables? Tell me all in the comments below! 

Scribbingly yours,

Catherine