In Dust and Sandals is a book about country life dedicated to children aged 3 to 7 years old that I wrote and illustrated based on my village life experience. I can’t quite remember the exact moment this children’s book idea came to be, so I’ll go back to the very beginning.
It has been 8 years since I’m studying traditional crafts and lifestyle in rural communities across Romania, and even after all these years, my love for these subjects hasn’t ended! I saw the necessity of preserving these heritage crafts by teaching them to children and youngsters because all these treasures are on the verge of extinction. However, writing a children’s book was something I had no clue about at that time. I had always thought if I got a baby, I would take him with me to all these places, to gain all the ancestral knowledge from an early age…
Four years ago I’ve had twins. By the time they were 8 months old, they accompanied us on our first journey together. They grew up like that, studying all these traditional skills with mom and dad and I can tell they are very wise. They are very curious, they like to dip their hands in potter’s clay, play the weaver, play milking the cow, then make a big cheese. I wasn’t wrong and I always thank God for enlightening me.
Suddenly, all the pieces fit together in one moment of inspiration! Children everywhere need to gain that knowledge. It not only teaches them about country life and farm animals but also about the natural order of things. They will learn how crops turn into food, how people work to get their daily food for themselves and their animals, how milk turns into cheese, how wool is collected from the sheep and turned into their sweaters and carpets, something that many of us grew up knowing. Maybe we did it, or we remember our parents and grandparents doing it, or maybe our parents told us about it, but something that our children don’t know.
“Curdled milk becomes cheese of any type-
Soft or hard, fresh or ripe.
In spring we shear the sheep,
Stuff big sacks with wool to keep,
To knit sweaters by candlelights,
To weave carpets on winter nights.”
It put things in order in a child’s mind and, what’s more, it teaches them gratitude in a world increasingly estranged from its natural origins. It teaches them to find joy in the simplest things.
“In dust and sandals, we roam about,
Up in the trees and down on the ground.
We who dwell beside the rivers
Harvest what nature gives us.”
It’s for your children, grandchildren, or your friend’s children. The book has 45 pages with realistic paintings that reproduce country life in detail, for children to form an accurate impression of it. Follow the link to order “In Dust and Sandals” on Amazon.
There is also the Ebook version of it, although print books are more suitable for children at this age. Please take the time to share this book and don’t forget to leave a review, it will help rank higher.
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Blog Comments
SFECLIS VIOLETA
March 14, 2023 at 10:59 am
Superb !
Lucian Blaga
Sufletul satului
Copilo, pune-ţi mânile pe genunchii mei.
Eu cred că veşnicia s-a născut la sat.
Aici orice gând e mai încet,
şi inima-ţi zvâcneşte mai rar,
ca şi cum nu ţi-ar bate în piept,
ci adânc în pământ undeva.
Aici se vindecă setea de mântuire
şi dacă ţi-ai sângerat picioarele
te aşezi pe un podmol de lut.
Uite, e seară.
Sufletul satului fâlfâie pe lângă noi,
ca un miros sfios de iarbă tăiată,
ca o cădere de fum din streşini de paie,
ca un joc de iezi pe morminte înalte.