There Might Be Lobsters and Pilar's Worries

Today, we're going to read Pilar's Words by Victoria Sanchez, illustrated by Jess Golden.

“And, there might be lots of us by Carolyn Kremie, illustrated by Laurel Mook.”

"Welcome. I'm so glad you're here. I'm Julie Andrews, and this is my library. As always,

my daughter Emma Walton Hamilton is here." "Hello. We can't wait to read with you today." "Mom, have you seen today's books?" "I know I left them around here somewhere." "Well, well I thought they were right there."

"Me too, but they seem to have disappeared." "Oh, maybe over here?"

"Oh no, I think we've lost them."

“"No, no, here they are, Emma. They were under this pile of paper. I'm sorry. It's my fault."”

"Oh, what a relief. I was so worried. They were gone. My palms were sweaty. My heart was racing. I mean, it's silly, actually. We have so many backup books. We could read instead. The library is full of them. We do. But, you know, fears are like that. Sometimes small things can start to feel really big. Which is actually what today's stories are about. "Oh, that's right. We're reading two books about dealing with nerves and fears. Exactly.

Fiers come in all shapes and sizes, but most of the time they're not so scary once we face them. We are some of our friends to answer this question. What's a fear you had that you learned to overcome?" Being scared of the dark. As I got older, I realized that was kind of silly. "I'm afraid of bees, but then I took a deep breath, and then I felt wonderful. And then I wasn't afraid of bees anymore."

"And what do you say to the bees?" "I'm not a flower bees." "Big bad wolfed because I thought they were big and scary, but they're not big and scary anymore. Because in my dreams I was super here, and I'd have feed them because I realized that they were just like dogs." "I used to be afraid of the flowers, but now they don't scare me anymore."

"Make mistakes. I used to get very upset over the mistake I made, but I learned to laugh over it, and that everyone will make mistakes, and mistakes will help us land to become better." "You're all very brave. I'm impressed."

“Listeners, if you want to tell us about how you handle a fear, just go to julyslibraryshow.org.”

There you can send us a message or a drawing. "We love hearing from you as you know, so let's head into our reading now to settle in." Here, in my library, my absolute favorite spot is our reading nook. With cozy pillows all around, a glowing lamp shines its light on the pages, there's a squishy rug under our feet, and shelves and shelves of backup books, in case we need them. Just in case, yes.

Okay, to get in the mood for our first story, I want everyone to close their eyes

and imagine that there's bright sun on your face. "The air is crisp and salty. You can hear waves and sea goals and laughter." And on the beach, you see a young girl with her dog, Suki, who's carrying a beloved stuffed animal in her mouth. Oh, let's read this one together, M. Okay, let's... [Music]

"There might be lobsters by Carolyn Krimi." "Lots of things at the beach, scared, Suki. Lots." "Come on, Suki, you can do it," said Eleanor. She stood at the bottom of the stairs to the beach and waved to Suki. But Suki was just a small dog, and the stairs were big and sandy, and she hadn't had lunch yet,

and her foot hurt a little, and she might get a shelf stuck up her nose, and she might tumble down on her head, and then she'd need stitches and besides, there might be lobsters." So, Suki sat at the top of the stairs with her stuffed animal chunk of monkey by her side.

and carried them down the stairs. "Come on, Suki, you can do it," said Eleanor. She tossed a beach ball, Suki's way.

“But Suki was just a small dog, and the beach ball was big and beachy, and it might hit her nose,”

and then it would pop, and it might be too loud, or it might knock her down, she might never get up again,

and she might have to live on the beach forever and eat seaweed to survive, and besides, beach balls attract lobsters. "So, Suki sat far away from the beach ball with chunk of monkey by her side. "Oh, Suki, Eleanor swooped that pop up with a tisk and a huff and cradled her in her arms. "Come on, Suki, you can do it,"

“Eleanor stood at the water's edge, and splashed a little splash at Suki.”

But Suki was just a small dog, and those waves were big, and they were wooshy,

and they were salty, and they were too wet, and they might toss her out at the middle of the sea. She might float all the way to Tasmania, or even Florida, and she might be swallowed by a whale, and she wasn't wearing a bathing suit, and besides, there might be lobsters. So, Suki sat at the edge of the water with chunk of monkey by her side. "Oh, Suki said

Eleanor, she shook her head and dove into the waves. "Suki sat and watched beach balls bouncing

and big boys running, and umbrellas flapping in life guards blowing loud whistles, and waves splashing with chunk of monkey floating out to sea. "Suki barked with chunk of monkey to come back!" "Chunk of monkey started to sink. Suki started to paddle. She paddled past a big beach ball, and threw a huge salty wave, and over something that might even be a lobster until she had chunk of monkey. He was safe. Suki had saved him.

She felt, braver than the bravest dog, because even though she was very small, chunk of monkey was smaller. "Oh, Suki, I knew you could do it!" said Eleanor. "She picked them both up with them. Yay, and a hooray!" and swung them very gently through the air. "Suki sat in the sandy sand with the wavy waves and watched for lobsters with chunk of monkey by her side, and they didn't see one. All day." "The end." "What a lovely tale of friendship." "Yes, you know, sometimes we find courage

“because others need us to be brave." "That's so true. I remember a time when you had a big splinter in”

your foot, Emma, when you were young, and I had to be brave for you, and that was very difficult to do. You were nervous, but I was nervous too." "That's right, and you taught me how to count to 10, and focus on something else to keep calm. I really worked. Yeah, I told you to keep looking out the window and find something to look at and keep counting. Sometimes little things can make us feel much better. They really can. Well, let's take a quick break before our next story.

"Okay, let's. Listeners will be back in the reading book in just a moment." Welcome back to the reading book, dear listeners, and we've just been joined by a very special guest.

You've written a wonderful story about how to deal with fear called Pilar's Worries. I did. It's about a little girl who loves ballet. She loves watching it. She loves dancing

it, and she's always practicing her steps. Airbusks, sachets, plays.

“"Clee, that's the one where you turn out your feet and bend your knees into a squat, right?”

Exactly. And I'm wondering, Julie, would you do me the honor of reading it?" "Oh, I'd be very happy to. The honor is all mine, Victoria. Let's begin." Pilar's Worries by Victoria Sanchez. Pilar plays, while brushing her teeth. Friday is always a good day, a ballet class day. She sashes into the kitchen, prepares to leap and

her feet stop. Auditions for winter, Wonderland, are Saturday. Tomorrow, Pilar worries. I can't dance in front of all those people. What if I forget the steps?

“Pilar lets out her breath. It's her favorite ballet. She knows all the steps.”

She hugs herself as she enters school. Pilar, she tells herself Friday is always a good day.

But in P.E. she drops a fly ball. She turns pink. During library, Pilar realizes she forgot to bring her very overdue book. A skin prickles hot. By lunch, her stomach is squeezed so small. She can only swallow one bite. Even though it's potsticker day. In math, Ms Jenkins' voice startles Pilar from a daydream.

Who would like to solve the problem on the board?

“Pilar's arm refuses to rise, but her hand twitches.”

Pilar, Ms Jenkins asks. Pilar immediately forgets the answer.

Pass, she mutters. Someone whispers loudly. She always says, "Pass."

Her eyes tear up. Her heart beats so fast, it scares her. "Do I need to go home?" She drops her head and sees a sticky note on her desk that says, "Breath." Sebastian, a friend from ballet, grins, Pilar smiles, and remembers to breathe. Finally, the last bell.

Finally, ballet. At the studio, Pilar's palms touched the warm wood of the bar. Her toes and heels pressed down on the floor. Ms Ward, they're instructor-claps. Let's begin with Piers. The school day disappears. After warm-ups, Ms Ward asks, "Pilar, could you please demonstrate your arabesque?"

She sees students staring and Sebastian smiling. Pilar's palms are sticky on the bar, but as soon as her leg lifts, her shoulders relax. The rest of the hour breezes by. Dancers call Ms Ward, "Oditions for Winter Wonderland are tomorrow. Please see me if you're interested." Pilar's heart leaps.

Then her worries creep back. Should I? Sebastian signals Pilar, but she turns and packs up. Pilar, it's Ms Ward signing up. I... Cheeks burning, she shakes her head. At bedtime, Mama sits on Pilar's bed. How is your day love? She asks, "Pilar's chest tightens. Then she begins to cry. Tryouts are tomorrow, Mama, but I'm too nervous."

Whether you try out this year or next year or never, Mighita, you're still an amazing dancer.

“I want to this year, Mama, but my whole body is scared.”

Mama touches Pilar's chest. They're signed for breathe. Mighita, if you decide to audition, you will feel scared, but usually when you are doing what you love, the good feelings are so big that the bad feelings become small. Pilar can't sleep. She thinks of Winter Wonderland and imagines her favorite part, the dancing snowflakes. She steps out of bed.

Quietly, like nighttime snow, she dances.

She feels peaceful and strong.

“Tired at last, she collapses into her comforter.”

I can do this. She murmurs. Pilar wakes so early Saturday that she can still see the moon in the violet sky. She pulls her hair into a bun. She makes a snack and fills her water bottle. Mama walks in yawning.

Well, good morning, early bird. Mama, Pilar blurs. I want to audition.

At the studio, Pilar's eyes miss wood. Pilar's belly is crazy. She thinks back to dancing last night. She breathes deep. Her teacher smiles. Pilar, I'm so happy you're here.

“Everyone's warming up backstage. Pilar feels like she swallowed a hundred butterflies.”

But just as she starts to worry, Sebastian walks up. I'm so nervous. I want to bath, he moans. Pilar laughs, and the butterflies float away. A judge calls, Pilar. The flatters return, but Pilar closes her eyes and breathes deep. I can do this. This is what I love. Her legs prickle and her feet feel numb, but she walks to center stage.

The music starts, Pilar closes her eyes and imagines winter and ice. A flushed cheeks cool. She steps and dances. Before she knows it, the music's silences and Pilar walks off stage, beaming and tall. Next week at school, during sharing, Miss Jenkins goes around the circle. Pass says Pilar. But Sebastian raises his hand.

Pilar and I are going to be in winter wonderland. We're snowflakes. The classmates speak up all at once. Cool. Wow. Whoa. Pilar's skin warms, but this time it's nice heat. Like the warmth of a fire, after playing in the snow. The end.

Oh my gosh, Julie. It was so fun to hear my words read by you. Thank you so much. Oh, it was such fun. And Pilar is so brave. She is. I'm so glad she didn't let her fears stop her from auditioning. And she got the part. Yes, she did. And she was so proud of herself. As she should be, you know, when I was young, like Pilar,

I got very nervous when I had to perform. Well, I still do quite often. But then I remember it's about how much I love what I'm doing and share that joy with the audience.

worries like Pilar. And she also doesn't like to be the center of attention. So I was amazed

when one day she asked me if she could audition for a big performance. I thought she was so brave. When she was a little girl, there hadn't been a lot of books about kids like her. So I thought this was a great story to show a character who has the worries, but who also was so much more than that. And I also think all kids worry sometimes. They might worry about little things or they might be big,

but I thought they'd understand Pilar too. So I'd hoped that Pilar's story would say to all the children

reading this book. "All kids, quiet or loud, cautious or bold, are capable of doing

“really amazing things, even if they're scary. And if like Julie, they just remember how much they”

love doing the things they do." Oh, well, thank you for writing it. Yes, and for bringing it to share with our listeners today. My pleasure. Bye, Emma. Bye, Julie. Thank you again. Bye. Bye. Bye. See you soon. Facing your fears can be hard. But overcoming them is one of the best feelings in the world. Yes, you feel so strong and proud doing something you thought you couldn't do. That means we've got a new message. Let's listen.

It's a very basic exercise. And it should be able to help you to be able to calm yourself down, get you centered and put you back in the present moment. When we do the exercise,

“you want to make sure that all your breathing goes in and out of your nose. Put your hand”

your belly and inhale nice and deep through your nose, pushing your belly out as far as you can. Imagine it's filling up with air like it's a balloon. Leave your hand there and exhale and pull your belly away from your hand, pushing all that stale air out of your body. Inhale deep again, pushing your belly back out towards your hand and you can use your imagination, see and feel all that good oxygen coming into your body. And then push it all out,

pulling your belly away from your hand and see any negative thoughts, any anxiety, and any stress and worry exiting your body with each breath. Last one we're going to try to take a big, deep breath that we can. So inhale nice and deep, filling your belly up like it's a balloon, nice long, deep breath slow and steady. Now hold a little, hold it and exhale it all out. Now if you had your eyes closed before opening them, we're going to take three deep breaths.

To see how we feel. So take those three breaths on your own and now you're being a scientist, ask yourself, how does my mind feel? Is it nice and clear or is it racing with thoughts? How does my body feel? Is it tense or has it relaxed? And when you finish your third breath, you can slowly slowly blink your eyes open, come back to your senses and if you like the way you feel,

“you know all you have to do. It's take a few breaths. All right everybody, I hope you”

really like that exercise. Have a blessed and beautiful day. Much love from the holistic life foundation.

What a powerful tool. I'm so happy Andy shared that with us. Yes, I feel more relaxed already.

You know, stopping to think or talk about our big feelings can make them seem so much less daunting. That's true and there are so many wonderful ways to help ourselves when we feel anxious or afraid. Oh, and speaking of wonderful, it's time for wonderful, wonderful, wonderful words. You know, our stories today reminded me of a wonderful word I just love, bravery. You feel big and bold, just say it. bravery. Yes, you know, in there might be lobsters. I love it when

the author says the waves are wooshy. It describes them perfectly wooshy way. I know I love it too.

so much fun just to say bugs. Bugs is one of my favorite things. That's why it's one of my favorite words.

Banana because it sounds funny to say you know, because the unicorn is pretty. If I see it as a

“stuff animal, I mean, not a real one since they don't exist in real life. That's why it's my favorite”

word to say. Listeners, if you have a wonderful word, you want to wow us with, go to julyslibraryshow.org and share it with us. We'll play some of your responses on the show. You know, that story about the beach gave me an idea. We should grab a blanket and go read by the bay. Oh, that's a fantastic idea, Mom. Let's get some books and go. And you know what? I'll pick up a few backup books too.

“So we don't have to worry about running out of things to read. Okay. And I will bring some peanut”

butter sandwiches. Hmm, perfect. Well, listeners, there's an exciting world of words out there to explore. Enjoy it. And we'll be back next week with another fantastic book that we've picked just for you. Happy reading. Bye bye. July's library is hosted and produced by July Andrews and Me Emma Walton, Hamilton. The featured books in this episode were Pillowers Worries by Victoria M. Sanchez

“illustrated by Jess Golden from Albert Whitman and Company. And there might be Lobsters written”

by Carolyn Krimmy and illustrated by Laurel Mulk from Candle Witt Press. Thanks to the teams at

Candle Witt and Albert Whitman and Company. We always recommend picking the books up for yourself.

You can find Pillowers Worries and there might be Lobsters at your local library or bookstore. The illustrations are a must see. For more book recommendations, head to julyslibraryshow.org. Sign up for our newsletter and you'll receive special activities and notes from Mom and Me. July's library is produced by Maui Bloom, illicit Dudley, Rosie DuPont, Tracy Mumford, Mark Sanchez, and Sandon Hutton. Our executive producer is Lauren D. Digital production is by

Christina Lopez. Original music is from Allison Layton Brown. Sound mixing is by Corey Schreppel in Eric Romani and engineering is by Sam Hamilton. Special thanks to Lily Kim and also to Associate Professor Sarah Park Dole and of St. Catherine University for consulting with our team.

We always love hearing from our listeners. Today, you heard the voices of Lily from Ashtral,

North Carolina, Desmond from Kansas City, Missouri, Gemma from Singapore, Evelyn from Richmond, Virginia, Walden from Portland, Oregon, Hannon from Chicago, Kai from Minnesota, and Susanna from Cincinnati, Ohio. July's library is a production of American public media.