A Ransome Moment...


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Posted by Ed Kiser on September 12, 2004 at 21:04:16 from 205.188.116.8 user Kisered.

This being the Hurricane season, we here in South Florida seem to take a special interest in watching the Weather Reports on TV. My Grandson was watching with me, and noticed the information mentioned something about a SSW wind. He enquired as to what kind of a wind is a "SSW wind".

I am so glad he asked. This was turning out to be a RANSOME MOMENT, a rare occasion to demonstrate the value of understanding All Things Ransome.

Grabbing my copy of SWALLOWS AND AMAZONS, which amazingly was quite handy, I flipped it down to P227, and displayed to him the "Compass Rose" with the tiny notations explaining the various directions. He studied it a bit, and was almost triumphant to finally discover the SSW.

We talked a bit about this drawing, and its meaning. Digging out my own compass, we compared its markings with those on the Ransome drawings. He eagerly grabbed that device and began walking about the house, looking at the little needle turn as he navigated from room to room.

It really did me good to see him look into these concepts that apparently he is seeing for the first time. The question of what did he learn in school certainly came to mind, as the idea of N, E, S, and W seemed to be such new information. But then, he is only 22 years old, so what do you expect. I showed him a National Geographic Map, having accumulated a box full of those over these many years, and showed him the arrow with the "N" at the point. He said something about always wondering what that arrow was for. We compared that with the map in the front of the S&A book, and he was quick to pounce on the NESW pointers there in the corner, and announce that there was another one of those compass things.

He grabbed my S&A book and started turning the pages, looking for more interesting pictures. Well, at least that is a start. A bit later, I saw he was lying on the sofa on his front, with the book open on the floor beside him, and he was actually READING. Saying nothing, I let him satisfy his aroused curiosities. Not saying how long this will last, but FINALLY there is someone related to me actually looking at a Ransome book besides me.

This situation both pleased and yet dismayed me. Glad to see him finally look at one of my precious books, something I have definitely TRIED to get him to do in the past, and yet a bit shocked that the four points of a compass was such new information to him. How can anyone get through high school and somehow not be at least exposed to such things? Something was terribly missing, and it so sad to contemplate as to what else is missing, that somehow I have always assumed they would teach him in that school. There is more to learn in high school other than the names of the more popular RAP performers.

Ed Kiser, South Florida




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