Cure for the Grumps: Lafcadio the Lion

Late to bed last night...and then hours spent tossing and turning in the sheets, while strange and bizarre dreams flashed through my brain...leaving me feeling very, very grumpy indeed this morning.

Stumbling to my laptop to check on news and other events, the first image that appeared on my Facebook wall was this:

*


And I smiled.

And all was right with the world again.

Because, really, how can one be grumpy when faced with a humorous picture of a lion wearing a marshmallow suit???

The picture comes from my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE BOOK OF ALL TIME, "Lafcadio, the Lion Who Shot Back" - written in 1963 by Shel Silverstein. My godmother gave me a copy of this book when I was eight years old, and after reading the book once, it quickly became an obsession. The story, the humor, the drawings, the puns - they sucked me in...and that book is still sitting on my bookshelves all these years later.

I love this book.

Let me say that again: I LOVE THIS BOOK.

I have probably read it more than 350 times over the years, and yet...and yet...I still cry at the end. Every. Single. Time.

I cry.

And then I smile, for I know that Lafcadio the Lion - wherever he may be in the world - is enjoying life right now, probably eating some delicious marshmallows...and how can you NOT smile at the idea of a lion eating marshmallows?

If you've never read this book...please. Stop what you're doing. Go to Amazon.com, and order the book NOW.

And then be prepared to fall in love with Lafcadio.

And then eat a marshmallow in his honor.

Peace.

*The picture appeared because I've "Liked" the page of Shel Silverstein, the author of the book...be sure to like his page, as well.