{"id":4759,"date":"2011-02-01T01:10:06","date_gmt":"2011-02-01T06:10:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paganpages.org\/content\/?p=4824"},"modified":"2011-01-17T19:18:44","modified_gmt":"2011-01-18T00:18:44","slug":"interview-with-author-gary-kowalski-earth-day-an-alphabet-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/2011\/02\/01\/interview-with-author-gary-kowalski-earth-day-an-alphabet-book\/","title":{"rendered":"Interview with Author Gary Kowalski “Earth Day: An Alphabet Book”"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Earth Day: An Alphabet Book is a beautiful tribute for children to pay mother earth, while simultaneously learning their alphabet.\u00a0 More than just an ordinary alphabet book, it is a beautifully drawn book that reminds us to give thanks for everything around us.\u00a0 It teaches a child a sense of gratitude. <\/em><\/p>\n

<\/em><\/p>\n

Author Gary Kowalski has generously taken the time to sit with our readers and share his thoughts. <\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

PaganPages: Hello Gary!\u00a0 It is a pleasure to meet you.\u00a0 Can you tell us a little bit about yourself first?\u00a0 You are a minister of a Unitarian Universalist Church, can you tell us a bit about it?<\/p>\n

Gary Kowalski: Unitarian Universalism is a faith that embraces of people of all beliefs and backgrounds.\u00a0 I have pagans, atheists, Buddhists and Christians in my congregation, who like the freedom to find their own answers and learn from those on differing spiritual paths. \u00a0We\u2019ve been around since colonial times in America.\u00a0 Figures like Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, who identified themselves as Unitarians, were busy making a political revolution but also demanded the right to independent opinion in the religious sphere.\u00a0 In fact, many of the Founding Fathers drew more inspiration from the pagan authors of classical Greece and Rome than from the Bible.\u00a0 Even then, they were looking to nature rather than scripture or traditional Christian doctrine as the primary revelation of divinity. <\/strong><\/p>\n

PP:What made you decide to write an alphabet book?<\/p>\n

GK:As children, we naturally appreciate Mother Earth and other living creatures.\u00a0 Research shows that young kids, for instance, dream about animals constantly.\u00a0 Harvard biologist E.O. Wilson thinks human beings are endowed with \u201cbiophilia,\u201d an inborn attraction to butterflies and pinecones and polar bears as part of our evolutionary inheritance.\u00a0 Too often that inborn sense of awe and reverence disappears as we age.\u00a0 So a book for children makes perfect sense. <\/strong><\/p>\n

PP:Why base it on Earth Day?<\/p>\n

GK:People of every religious tradition can embrace Earth Day.\u00a0 It\u2019s not a sectarian holiday, but a moment to consider our interdependence with air, sun, water and soil and re-commit to preserving the environment for future generations.\u00a0 The ecological crisis is really a spiritual crisis.\u00a0 The political will to save the Earth can only arise when individuals of every religion begin to realize that the planet does not belong to us but is the property of God or the Great Spirit or Maha Devi (the Hindu Goddess) or whatever name you give to that creative mystery.\u00a0 We\u2019re just holding the world in trust. <\/strong><\/p>\n

PP:What was your inspiration behind the book?<\/p>\n

GK:My own mystical moments have come through relationships with animals, like my dog Chinook whom I once called my \u201cspiritual guide.\u201d\u00a0 So I tend to think that there\u2019s a bit of nature worshiper in all of us, not just Wiccans and Druids but garden-variety tree-huggers like me who experience a contact high from walking on the beach or watching the geese migrate south in the autumn.\u00a0 Jane Goodall reports that even chimpanzees perform a \u201crain dance\u201d when there\u2019s big weather in the sky.\u00a0 There\u2019s a thrill from feeling connected to all those elemental forces, so much older and more powerful than our own transient egos.<\/strong><\/p>\n

PP:Did you choose the inspirational artwork that compliments your thoughts in the book or collaborate with the artist?<\/p>\n

GK:No, but the illustrations by Rocco Baviera are delightful: colorful, simple, and lighthearted to accompany what I hope is a joyous message of kinship with creation. <\/strong><\/p>\n

PP:Did your role as a minister help with writing this book?<\/p>\n

GK:The words originated as material for Sunday morning.\u00a0 So I didn\u2019t set out with the intention to write a book, but to summon up a sense of the sacred circle that includes us all. <\/strong><\/p>\n

PP:Is your publisher a part of your ministry?<\/p>\n

GK:Skinner House is the publishing arm of the Unitarian Universalist Association. \u00a0Several years ago they published a curriculum I wrote on World Religions, as well as a brief volume of personal essays titled Green Mountain Spring and Other Leaps of Faith.<\/em> <\/strong><\/p>\n

PP:Have you written any other books?<\/p>\n

GK:The Souls of Animals<\/em>, my first book, and Goodbye Friend: Healing Wisdom For Anyone Who Has Ever Lost A Pet<\/em> (both from New World Library) have been translated into six languages and sold in the hundreds of thousands.\u00a0 I\u2019ve published two other titles with Lantern Books, Science and the Search for God <\/em>and The Bible According To Noah: Theology As If Animals Mattered. <\/em> Finally, there\u2019s Revolutionary Spirits: The Enlightened Faith of America\u2019s Founding Fathers <\/em>(BlueBridge Publishing) which came out in 2008.\u00a0 You\u2019ll find all my books on Amazon or, better yet, you can order them through your local, independent bookstore.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although, Gary Himself, is not a pagan, his earth worship has inspired us and we hope it inspires you and your children, as well.<\/p>\n

Thank you Gary for your time and your thoughts!\u00a0 Your book is beautiful and has taught us about giving thanks for our everyday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Earth Day: An Alphabet Book is a beautiful tribute for children to pay mother earth, while simultaneously learning their alphabet.\u00a0 More than just an ordinary alphabet book, it is a beautifully drawn book that reminds us to give thanks for everything around us.\u00a0 It teaches a child a sense of gratitude. Author Gary Kowalski has generously taken the time to sit with our readers and share his thoughts. PaganPages: Hello Gary!\u00a0 It is a pleasure to meet you.\u00a0 Can you tell us a little bit about yourself first?\u00a0 You are a minister of a Unitarian Universalist Church, can you tell us a bit about it? Gary Kowalski: Unitarian Universalism is a faith that embraces of people of all beliefs and backgrounds.\u00a0 I have pagans, atheists, Buddhists and Christians in my congregation, who like the freedom to find their own answers and learn from those on differing spiritual paths. \u00a0We\u2019ve been around since colonial times in America.\u00a0 Figures like Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, who identified themselves as Unitarians, were busy making a political revolution but also demanded the right to independent opinion in the religious sphere.\u00a0 In fact, many of the Founding Fathers drew more inspiration from the pagan authors of classical Greece and Rome than from the Bible.\u00a0 Even then, they were looking to nature rather than scripture or traditional Christian doctrine as the primary revelation of divinity. PP:What made you decide to write an alphabet book? GK:As children, we naturally appreciate Mother Earth and other living creatures.\u00a0 Research shows that young kids, for instance, dream about animals constantly.\u00a0 Harvard biologist E.O. Wilson thinks human beings are endowed with \u201cbiophilia,\u201d an inborn attraction to butterflies and pinecones and polar bears as part of our evolutionary inheritance.\u00a0 Too often that inborn sense of awe and reverence disappears as we age.\u00a0 So a book for children makes perfect sense. PP:Why base it on Earth Day? GK:People of every religious tradition can embrace Earth Day.\u00a0 It\u2019s not a sectarian holiday, but a moment to consider our interdependence with air, sun, water and soil and re-commit to preserving the environment for future generations.\u00a0 The ecological crisis is really a spiritual crisis.\u00a0 The political will to save the Earth can only arise when individuals of every religion begin to realize that the planet does not belong to us but is the property of God or the Great Spirit or Maha Devi (the Hindu Goddess) or whatever name you give to that creative mystery.\u00a0 We\u2019re just holding the world in trust. PP:What was your inspiration behind the book? GK:My own mystical moments have come through relationships with animals, like my dog Chinook whom I once called my \u201cspiritual guide.\u201d\u00a0 So I tend to think that there\u2019s a bit of nature worshiper in all of us, not just Wiccans and Druids but garden-variety tree-huggers like me who experience a contact high from walking on the beach or watching the geese migrate south in the autumn.\u00a0 Jane Goodall reports that even chimpanzees perform a \u201crain dance\u201d when there\u2019s big weather in the sky.\u00a0 There\u2019s a thrill from feeling connected to all those elemental forces, so much older and more powerful than our own transient egos. PP:Did you choose the inspirational artwork that compliments your thoughts in the book or collaborate with the artist? GK:No, but the illustrations by Rocco Baviera are delightful: colorful, simple, and lighthearted to accompany what I hope is a joyous message of kinship with creation. PP:Did your role as a minister help with writing this book? GK:The words originated as material for Sunday morning.\u00a0 So I didn\u2019t set out with the intention to write a book, but to summon up a sense of the sacred circle that includes us all. PP:Is your publisher a part of your ministry? GK:Skinner House is the publishing arm of the Unitarian Universalist Association. \u00a0Several years ago they published a curriculum I wrote on World Religions, as well as a brief volume of personal essays titled Green Mountain Spring and Other Leaps of Faith. PP:Have you written any other books? GK:The Souls of Animals, my first book, and Goodbye Friend: Healing Wisdom For Anyone Who Has Ever Lost A Pet (both from New World Library) have been translated into six languages and sold in the hundreds of thousands.\u00a0 I\u2019ve published two other titles with Lantern Books, Science and the Search for God and The Bible According To Noah: Theology As If Animals Mattered. Finally, there\u2019s Revolutionary Spirits: The Enlightened Faith of America\u2019s Founding Fathers (BlueBridge Publishing) which came out in 2008.\u00a0 You\u2019ll find all my books on Amazon or, better yet, you can order them through your local, independent bookstore. Although, Gary Himself, is not a pagan, his earth worship has inspired us and we hope it inspires you and your children, as well. Thank you Gary for your time and your thoughts!\u00a0 Your book is beautiful and has taught us about giving thanks for our everyday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":1,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4759","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4759","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4759"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4759\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4759"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4759"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4759"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}