Flat Josie visits her aunt at SeaWorld San Antonio
A few weeks ago I opened my mailbox and a childish paper cutout fell out of the envelope, along with a letter.
“Please take Flat Josie on an adventure to SeaWorld in San Antonio and do not let any animals eat her,” it read.
I nodded my head with recognition. Every year dozens of these flattened figures enter the park, and when they do, we show them the time of their little paper lives.
Before you think I am totally crazy, let me explain.
These paper cutouts are based on the hero of a popular children’s book, Flat Stanley, written by Jeff Brown. In the story, which was originally published in 1964, Stanley Lambchop, the main character, is flattened when the bulletin board hanging over his bed falls on him in the middle of the night. Despite his altered state, he finds a way to have adventures and even saves the day.
Children have been sending flat versions of this character to have adventures all over the world. Being an adventure park, we get our share.
In this case, Flat Josie (who was renamed for gender reasons) came from my Grade 4 niece, Josephine Grady, who goes to school at St. Nicholas in Tamworth, New South Wales, Australia.
Normally, when a Flat Person arrives at the park from a school child, we give him or her to the “new guy.” Mainly because it’s the best way to learn to navigate our 250-acre park and to learn who you need to call to assist you with special projects. Flat Stanley’s have ridden the roller coasters, watched the shows and even played in our Lost Lagoon waterpark.
This time, though, I would serve as the adventure guide.
Flat Josie and I went to the Main Entrance, we met a beluga whale and her baby then had breakfast with an armadillo and a Tegu, by then we were already exhausted. The second day, we saw Shamu perform Believe and visited the play area. I sent the exciting adventure photos back to my niece, as requested by her teacher. You can see Flat Josie’s adventures in this Flickr photo set .
My niece’s project is due this week and she sent us a brief message saying “she wishes she could be Flat Josie.” I think that was her way of saying she wanted to come visit.
It was a really fun project and a great way to connect with my niece, whom I rarely see.
This is the allure of Flat Stanley…the challenge to make his adventure wonderful for a schoolchild we may never meet. Have you ever heard of Flat Stanley? I would love to hear your stories.
For the community, Fran.
Tomorrow….part 2. The Flat Stanley Project. How millions of their stories can be found in one place!
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Tags: Flat Stanley, school projects, SeaWorld San Antonio
Posted in Our Town, Uncategorized
I bet her Flat Stanely had the best adventure in the class.