Why do you judge me?

"Why do you judge me?" they ask softly "Did I do something to offend you? Did I not tell it correctly? Was I out of line? Does it matter that I am not widely accepted but there are a few who appreciate me? Are those few out of line for loving me? Who is to say whether they cherish or hate me?"

Their questions are all at once.

Their voices are tones of all dialects, all worlds, all times, all nations, all vernacular.

They speak with earnest and wish only to be heard.

They understand that not everyone will like them all, that more than likely only a few will love them.

Their lives are determined by a select few and they understand the prejudice of those few - in fact they support their right to have an opinion.

They only wish the few allowed everyone else to make their own choices - for within their voices we can discover great things about ourselves, about life, and about dreams...

"Curiosity is not a sin...But we should exercise caution with our curiosity...yes indeed." Albus Dumbledore - Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire -the amazing JK Rowling.

"Language is man's way of communicating with his fellow man and it is language alone that separates him from the lower animals." - I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings - the beautiful Maya Angelou

Suddenly two coiled arms of twisting hair shot out of Wedgie Woman's head and grabbed George and Harold by the back of their underwear, yanking them high into the air.

"You know," said George "this isn't as funny as I thought it would be."

-Captain Underpants - the hilarious Dav Pilkey

"You know when you see a gorgeous boy on the street and you say to your friend, "Look at him!" and then your friend makes a face like, ugly? We all have such totally varied tastes that someone is going to look at you and think, yum-yum dee-lish, no matter what you think you look like. You just have to learn to see what they see." - Because I'm Worth It - Gossip Girl - the witty & utterly hip Cecily von Ziegesar

"Are you there God? It's me, Margaret. I just told my mother I want a bra. Please help me grow God. You know where. I want to be like everyone else." - Are you there God? It's me, Margaret. - the honest & unfiltered at any age Judy Blume.

"Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter - tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther....And then one fine morning --

So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." - The Great Gatsby - the moving and melancholy tones of F. Scott Fitzgerald

"It was that kind of a crazy afternoon, terrifically cold, and no sun out or anything and you felt like you were disappearing every time you crossed a road." - The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger

Make them more popular by putting them on a list - making them forbidden and ever so tempting.

Yes, judge them - we won't judge you for the list.

Because a list is just words & who better than the reader or writer understands words? That as a list they are just...a column of opinion...we have the freedom to look at the list, to ignore it, to accept it, to follow it and to laugh at it...

We educate ourselves in order to know that hidden within the list are lessons..that those of us who laugh at the list AND those of us who support it should always remember..

"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."

-To Kill A Mockingbird - the ever reclusive yet embraced Harper Lee

Pick that last one up sometime, banned/schmanned - its worth the time and the consideration to forget that its banned....

Happy Banned Books Week

For the list & more information about Banned Books Week

click Here

Oh the awesome and fun you may discover! Have a Fun Filled Friday!