The Important Book by Margaret Wise Brown is a classic children’s story from the 1940s. It explains how a glass is important because it holds things. A shoe is important because you put your foot into it. It’s a whimsical story, but suggests a more serious topic. Ideas begin to drift in the air like a pleasant fragrance.

After reading this story to my third graders, I posed the question; what is important to you? I expected them to say their X-Boxes and technology games. But out of twenty students, only three mentioned possessions. All the rest stated their families or pets were important because they take care of them and comfort them when they are lonely. William even said his soul was the most important thing…

So as we are bombarded with materialism and feel that the world has gone mad, it’s nice to know that underneath it all, we still need each other.

From another children’s treasure- As The Little Prince would say- “What is essential is invisible to the eye”.

I now pose this question to you. What is important? What is really important….?