William Penn Life, 2012 (47. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2012-12-01 / 12. szám
My Hungarian adventure with Flat St A Story and Photos by Richard E. Sarosi foia^nle^iaKelStaiiijiTing fcfiEenci [a tlthefsV a pie?l THE PHONE RANG about 7:30 p.m. "Hey, Cuz, how you doing?" My cousin Mary asked. "When are you leaving for Hungary?" "I take off tomorrow night," I said. "We leave for Detroit at 1:00 p.m., and I should be there by 3:30. The flight to Europe leaves at 9:50 p.m." "I have a favor to ask of you," Mary said. "Sure," I replied, "what's the favor?" "How would you like to take Flat Stanley with you and record his journey in Hungary?" I paused, then said what many would say to such a request. "Mary," I said, "who is Flat Stanley?" Cousin Mary proceeded to clue me in. Flat Stanley is the title character of a series of books written by the late Jeff Brown that Mary's eight-year-old daughter Jenna had been reading. The books tell of the adventures of a little boy who was flattened by a large bulletin board and makes the best of his new situation. He is only onehalf inch thick, which makes him the perfect size to slip under doors or be mailed in an envelope. He can be rolled up or flown like a kite. The character inspired the Flat Stanley Project, a literacy project founded by Dale Hubert in 1995. Through this project, children from different parts of the world connect with each other by creating and sending each other "flat" visitors through the mail or digitally via the Flat Stanley app. The children then take their visitor with them as they go about their daily lives. They write about and photograph what they experience with their new friend. They then return the flat character to the child who sent it to them, or forward it to another child in another part of the world to document further adventures. Eventually, the character returns to the child who created it, full of information about and pictures of other people and cultures. "Jenna is coloring Stanley as we speak," Mary said. "I can get him to your house by 9:30 tomorrow morning. I know you are the right person for this. I am sure you are going to have a lot of fun with Flat Stanley on your vacation. If he gets to be a bother, I understand. Whatever pictures you take, it will be appreciated. I will send his book so you can read it on the plane. Have a great time, and I will see you when you get back." The next morning, Mary made the 45-minute drive to my house, and Flat Stanley and his book were left in my mailbox. At 1:00 p.m., he was in my carry-on, and we were heading to the airport in Detroit to begin our journey to Paris, Prague, Lake Balaton and Budapest. After checking in at the Detroit airport, Flat Stanley began to meet members of our tour group. They wanted to know why I was taking pictures of him by my suitcase, in front of our plane and by the monitor listing our flight. It was the beginning of a journey, and I realized that Flat Stanley was quite a cutie. He was going to be a star. 12 0 December 2012 0 William Penn Life
