Because Amelia Smiled

by David Ezra Stein

Transcript

00:00To you, pass it on, because Amelia smiled, by David Ezra Stein, because Amelia smiled

00:17coming down the street, Mrs. Higgins smiled too, she thought of her grandson Lionel in

00:22Mexico and baked some cookies to send to him, because Mrs. Higgins baked cookies, Lionel

00:28ate one of the cookies, he decided to share the rest with his class, and teach them an

00:33English song about cookies, because Lionel taught his class a song, one of his students

00:38kickboxer Sensatia Golpes decided to be a teacher too, she had her cousin record her

00:43in the plaza and put the video online, Zesta Crump and her ballet club in England saw the

00:48video and decided to add some new moves to their goodwill wreck deal, in Israel, Kotz

00:53Glubberman age 4, who was in the audience decided he liked dancing after all, at bedtime,

00:59he danced his brother Ichabod to sleep, because Kotz danced him to sleep, Ichabod slept all

01:05night through, in the apartment next door, Betty Marlon Spike Glamorous Rumba Queen got

01:10a great night's sleep, she woke up in a good mood and took the band to get their hair done,

01:15in Paris, the band felt so fancy they gave a free show on the Pont Neuf, on the barge

01:20below, Gregor the ex-clown listened and sighed, their love song Con corazon intocto reminded

01:26him of his old flame the amazing Phyllis who lived in Positano Italy, the next morning,

01:32he bought a bouquet to send to her with a note that said Phyllis after all these years,

01:36will you marry me, Phyllis was so happy, she threw roses from a high wire, she was caught

01:41on film by a TV crew that was doing a story on stray cats, back in New York, Lydia Fridita

01:47saw Phyllis on TV while making pizzas on Carmine Street, on the subway home, she began

01:53a scarf of roses for her niece Pia Maria, she sat across from Pigeon Man Jones, he watched

01:59her and remembered his dear old grandma who loved to knit, when he got back to his rooftop

02:04and let his pigeons out, he wondered if maybe somehow wherever grandma was she could see

02:09them, because Pigeon Man Jones let his birds out, Amelia saw them, and she smiled, we are

02:15caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny, whatever

02:20affects one directly affects all indirectly, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., David Ezra Stein

02:26is the creator of many award-winning picture books including Interrupting Chicken, which

02:31was awarded a Caldecott honor, about because Amelia smiled he says, the story of Amelia

02:36is bigger than anything that can fit in a book, it's the story of how we are connected,

02:41to people we love, to people we don't even know, whether you know it or not you are part

02:46of the story too, David Ezra Stein lives with his family in Kew Gardens New York, the end.