This trio of moss-covered Christmas trees in Toronto's Allan Gardens, reminds me of the surreal plants growing from the pages of Dr. Seuss books - found under many a Christmas tree!
Plants and animals were a big part of Theodor Seuss Geisel's childhood. If you're picturing a red barn and green pastures, think again. His Grandfather, Theodore, and Dad, Robert were well to do Springfield, Massachussetts German-American beer barons. When Ted was about five years old, Robert Geisel was given an honourary place on the Springfield parks board. The park had a zoo.
Little Ted spent many a weekend walking through the zoo with his parents. Back at home, he was encouraged to draw animals on his bedroom walls. It was the beginning of a wonderful life as an artist.
In January of 1920, just a month after the death of Ted's grandfather, prohibition forced the closure of what had been one of the largest breweries in New England. Ted's father ventured into realestate, and a few years later, became Springfields's Superintendent of Parks. He used to send Ted bones and tusks, which the young illustrator and sculptor would use to create hilarious taxidermy pieces.
Dr. Seuss would appreciate the whimsy of this enormous peacock. The individually painted shingles of giant Sugar Pine cones, the copper and olive coloured Magnolia leaves, the pink, yellow and orange Coleus plants, the grey and green Succulents, and Ivy, all combine to create something resembling a Seuss creation.
Even this little Christmas tree, covered in rubbery-leafed succulents and Coleus, gives a nod to the garden of Dr. Seuss' imagination. There's a cast of characters behind it, too! Each plant looks animated.
You're probably wondering about Ted's name. When he was Editor of the Dartmouth College campus newspaper, The Jack O'Lantern, he and his buddies were caught sharing a pint of gin in his room. It was prohibition, and as punishment, he was removed as Editor of the paper. Ted Geisel continued drawing editorial cartoons, using his middle name, Seuss, which was his Bavarian mother's maiden name. He added the title, "Dr." years later.
As a German-American living through World War I, Ted encountered hatred and bullying. At college, he encountered anti-semitism. He was Lutheran. Everyone assumed he was Jewish. He never forgot what anti-semitism felt like.
He fought facism and racism through his editorial cartoons, which were published in national magazines. In 1942, he joined Frank Capras' documentary film unit, as a script writer and director, and went overseas to Luxembourg. There, US Army Captain Ted Geisel was sent with a military police escort across the border to Bastogne, Belgium, in the hopes that he would see "some fighting".
That night, 250-thousand German soldiers attacked the American positions, and Ted was caught behind enemy lines. "Nobody came along and put up a sign saying 'this is the Battle of the Bulge'. How was I supposed to know?" He said that, the fact there were no friendly troops in any direction, seemed to be normal in a war. Three days later, British troops rescued him, and his police escort.
The man whose rythmic, and funny verse revolutionized the world of childrens' books, with 44 childrens' books to his credit, almost didn't get published. After a multitude of rejection letters, he was ready to burn the manuscript for his first book. Walking down New York's Madison Avenue, he ran into a former college classmate, who had just been made the Juvenile Editor at Vanguard Press. Within hours, they signed the contract for And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, which became a classic. Dr. Seuss would later say, "that's one of the reasons I believe in luck. If I'd been going down the other side of Madison Avenue, I would be in the drycleaning business today!"
Dr. Seuss was a master of nonsensical logic. " If I start with a two-headed animal, I must never waiver from that concept." He explained, "there must be two hats in the closet, two toothbrushes in the bathroom, and two sets of spectacles on the night table."
As a German-American living through World War I, Ted encountered hatred and bullying. At college, he encountered anti-semitism. He was Lutheran. Everyone assumed he was Jewish. He never forgot what anti-semitism felt like.
He fought facism and racism through his editorial cartoons, which were published in national magazines. In 1942, he joined Frank Capras' documentary film unit, as a script writer and director, and went overseas to Luxembourg. There, US Army Captain Ted Geisel was sent with a military police escort across the border to Bastogne, Belgium, in the hopes that he would see "some fighting".
That night, 250-thousand German soldiers attacked the American positions, and Ted was caught behind enemy lines. "Nobody came along and put up a sign saying 'this is the Battle of the Bulge'. How was I supposed to know?" He said that, the fact there were no friendly troops in any direction, seemed to be normal in a war. Three days later, British troops rescued him, and his police escort.
The man whose rythmic, and funny verse revolutionized the world of childrens' books, with 44 childrens' books to his credit, almost didn't get published. After a multitude of rejection letters, he was ready to burn the manuscript for his first book. Walking down New York's Madison Avenue, he ran into a former college classmate, who had just been made the Juvenile Editor at Vanguard Press. Within hours, they signed the contract for And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, which became a classic. Dr. Seuss would later say, "that's one of the reasons I believe in luck. If I'd been going down the other side of Madison Avenue, I would be in the drycleaning business today!"
Dr. Seuss was a master of nonsensical logic. " If I start with a two-headed animal, I must never waiver from that concept." He explained, "there must be two hats in the closet, two toothbrushes in the bathroom, and two sets of spectacles on the night table."
Albizia Julibrissen (above) not only sounds like the name of a Dr. Seuss character, its blossoms look like one too! The spiky, hot pink tufted flower, is best known as the blossom of the Persian Silk Tree, or Mimosa. Vibrantly coloured, softly bristled spikes of Celosia (below) and tall, bizarre twists of Ligularia (further below), look very Seuss-like.
Dillweed (below), a simple plant which grows in many Summer gardens (and would have been enjoyed in many of the German dishes of his youth), shares that bizarre Seuss-like plant structure.
...and my personal favourite, chickens nesting in a Coral Peony! Dr. Seuss would have loved this!
Every Christmas, Dr. Seuss books are given to children, whose parents and grandparents read them as children. Many families have made watching, Seuss' animated movie, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, an annual tradition, which reminds us all of the true spirit of Christmas.
And the Grinch with his Grinch feet
ice cold in the snow,
stood puzzling and puzzling,
how could it be so?
It came without ribbons.
It came without tags.
It came without packages,
boxes or bags.
And he puzzled and puzzled,
'til his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something
he hadn't before.
What if Christmas, he thought,
doesn't come from a store.
What if Christmas, perhaps,
Means a little bit more.
May all of our hearts grow three sizes this day!
And the Grinch with his Grinch feet
ice cold in the snow,
stood puzzling and puzzling,
how could it be so?
It came without ribbons.
It came without tags.
It came without packages,
boxes or bags.
And he puzzled and puzzled,
'til his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something
he hadn't before.
What if Christmas, he thought,
doesn't come from a store.
What if Christmas, perhaps,
Means a little bit more.
May all of our hearts grow three sizes this day!
This made me laugh: Grinch green and raspberry red Poinsettias!
I enjoyed reading this very interesting story about Dr. Zeus’ and these various plants. Than you!
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