FACE EVERY CHALLENGE AS AN ADVENTURE--AND NEVER FORGET TO LAUGH!

Today, I attended a remarkable event--a non-memorial service for the grande dame of children's book publishing, Margaret K. McElderry. She was 98 when she died recently, and she left an amazing legacy of children's book editors and authors whose books have shaped the experiences of generations of children.

The speakers were terrific, and they quoted Margaret frequently as they told stories of her life and work. Here are some of my favorites:

Jan Lamb talked about her kindness, and about the importance of recognizing life's boundless possibilities and taking strange paths.

Amy Kellman, a librarian and long-time friend, said she liked to say that we are all on a journey with children, and it must be exciting, important, and fun.

Tracey Adams repeated the quote in this post's title: Face every challenge as an adventure and never, ever forget to laugh!

One of the points that resonated particularly for me was the story of the time that Ms. McElderry was told, in 1971, after her books had won dozens of major awards, that "the future has passed you by." She was let go from her position at Harcourt, but she refused to be defeated. She moved to Atheneum, where she was the first children's book editor to have her name on her books in an imprint which continues to today. She managed to survive all the corporation acquisitions that folded Atheneum into Macmillan and ultimately into Simon & Schuster. One speaker quoted her words on coping with a life-changing trauma: "Put one foot in front of the other until you can't remember anymore why you are going that way. Then you will be on your new path."

I met Harold Underdown at the reception afterward. His website is a wonderful source of information about children's books. Here is his remembrance of her:
 http://www.underdown.org/margaret-mcelderry.htm

She was intensely interested in everyone she met--and she talked to everyone! She would ask, "What's your story? Who are you?"

One of her best friends, author Susan Cooper, remembered that her dear friend used to say:
"When something excites you, you won't be deterred."

A lot of great words to live by. Thank you, Margaret K McElderry. I never met you, but you have inspired me!