Brilliant Mornings – Details, episodes & analysis

A group of children from the history club "Artifact" travels to Arizona where they discover the layers of the Grand Canyon, visit the Navajo and Hopi people, hear an ancient legend and barely escape an angry elk.  Jonathan, one of the boys, learns a secret to overcome his trouble with running.

Be sure to order our children's history magazine, ARTIFACT, at brilliant-mornings.com for related stories, activities, games, comics and more - all focused on highlights from HISTORY! 

For authentic legends from Native Americans, this book is very helpful and rich:

Voices of the Winds: Native American Legends, by Margot Edmonds, Ella Clark, Ella Elizabeth Clark

Who made the footprints in the clay? Archeologists on Calvert Island have made a discovery, and we enjoy an exciting story of a family traveling to North America to explain their findings.  Could Tuya be the mother of the indigenous nations of North America? 

Please visit our website, brilliant-mornings.com and sign up for our mailing list to receive the children’s magazine, ARTIFACT; the first Volume is free for our listeners!  

Also, follow us on Instagram @brilliantmornings to vote on whether this story should be made into a book! 

Join us for the next episodes which includes a road trip across America! 

This podcast was written and produced by Heidi Illian.  Music (all but intro) from ep. sound. 

Write to brilliantmornings@gmail.com for more information. 

Three teams of fathers and their children race the clock to set up their very own inventions on Mt. Washington!  Inspired by father-child teams from history, they create devices to help hikers!  We are celebrating fathers and father-figures this week in honor of Father's Day!

Let Doc Susie Anderson inspire you - she  saved patients' limbs and climbed mountains of snow as an amazing midwest doctor:  https://www.coloradovirtuallibrary.org/digital-colorado/colorado-histories/20th-century/susan-anderson-mountain-doctor/

What did Alexander Graham Bell do? Here's a short video: https://www.britannica.com/video/180119/Overview-invention-telephone-focus-work-Alexander-Graham

A father and son tinker together to make the first passenger trains in England: https://www.theschoolrun.com/homework-help/george-stephenson-and-the-development-of-the-railway

Extension activities: 

1. Fathers/parents what skills do you have that you can pass on to your children?  Can you use those skills to help others?  Share your ideas with me on the Brilliant Mornings Instagram!

2. Design an invention which will help others!  Draw it!  If possible, try to build one. =) Share your ideas with me on the Brilliant Mornings Instagram!

This Juneteenth, celebrate the inspiring woman Henrietta Wood, whose story was lost to descendants for over one hundred years.  We follow her dangerous and convoluted journey to freedom and learn how her endurance leads to victory! 

CHALLENGE: FOR THOSE YOUNGER LISTENTERS, CAN YOU JUMP EVERY TIME YOU HEAR THE WORDS "FREE" OR "FREEDOM"?

CHALLENGE: FOR ALL WHO COUNT...HOW MANY TIMES IS THE WORD "FREE" MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE? ANSWER @BRILLIANTMORNINGS ON INSTAGRAM FOR A POSSIBLE PRIZE!

Episode Poem: "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" from Shaker, Why Don't You Sing? Copyright © 1983 by Maya Angelou. Used by permission of Random House, an imprint and division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. (Special permission granted for educators teaching through audio during 2020-September 2021.)

Our dynamic cast includes individuals who inspire the world on a daily basis!  Discover them below:

Amber O’Neal Johnston (consultant and barbecue host) is a home educator, speaker, writer and consultant who inspires families around the world with her own journey in creating an inclusive, culturally-rich home education using the Charlotte Mason philosophy.  She can be found on at Heritagemom.com, or on Instagram @heritagemomblog where she shares her wisdom, encouragement, and a vast collection of resources.  We are so very grateful to Ms. Amber for her wisdom and participation in today’s episode!

Celebrated actress Mina Thomas (true words of Henrietta Wood; Maya Angelou's poem "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings")  currently graces the stage of Sight and Sound Theater in Branson, MO, where she has most recently played the role of Mary Magdalene in the show Jesus. While you plan your trip to the theater, view a recent interview here: https://www.facebook.com/sightsoundtheatresbranson/videos/932053714292274

Damion Sanders, (Barbecue host) a gun violence survivor, lives to help the hurting heal & change worlds with words. His core belief is that freed people should free people.
Follow him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/damionbsanders/

Randy Mason, a husband, dad and hip-hop artist has a heart for the next generations.  Find his music and more information here: https://linktr.ee/randymasonmusic
Follow him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/randymasonmusic/

Sharon Chang, our narrator, recently made headlines as the first Black female partner in William Morris Endeavor's history! Check out her story here: https://variety.com/list_item/sharon-chang/ She has also brought her talent and passion for music as worship director to Pascack Bible Church for 30 years! (Thank you, Mrs. Chang, for being my first singing teacher!)

Our cast also includes Timmy L., Micah I., and Bella I.

Special Mention to our editors and consultants:

1. Erika Alicea https://www.instagram.com/cmcityliving/
2. Shaun McClin
3. David Chang
4. Natasha Sanchez 

Primary sources are priceless. Please check out these life-changing stories I found during the in-depth research stage of preparing for this episode:

1. Henrietta Wood's story, in her own words! http://wcaleb.rice.edu/omeka/collections/show/9

2. Stories of former slaves in the Oklahoma/Texas region (in their own words): http://lcweb2.loc.gov/mss/m

Happy Mother's Day!  Listeners call in to talk about their mothers and we discover the mothers behind some of the world's most influential people!  Don't miss this celebration of mothers and share it with a friend today!

For further reading:

https://store.lamplighter.net/mobile/mothers-of-famous-men-p1410.aspx







Sources:
https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/ortiz-de-dominguez-josefa-c-1768-1829

Grace, Josiah, and their entire group of friends from America stood speechless, watching a battle between French and Mexican soldiers unfold before their very eyes.  They had traveled to Mexico to experience a holiday called Cinco de Mayo and had met a friendly girl named Ashley who gave tours with her family.  Along the way, discover the identify of the hiding boy, the best Mexican meals, and what "Yo soy..." means!  

Join us as we discover Spanish phrases, Mexican foods, and  stories from Mexico's history! The stories today center around the idea that even a lump of slimy clay can become a beautiful valued possession!  Persevere and and you'll have beauty and victory in life! 

Highlights for further study:

Benito Juarez, Mexican President

Puebla, city in Mexico

Telavera pottery

Mexican cuisine (tacos, tostadas, chalupas, tlayuda tostadas, sope, flautas, tamales, and much more!)

*Challenge Question* at the end of the episode!!  Place your guess on the Brilliant Mornings Instagram, or Brilliantmornings@gmail.com and you may receive a reward!!!

A blissful spring nature walk, an Easter egg hunt, and a fall down a dangerous cliff - today the Poetry Kids group stays in Ireland and follows a poem's clues which guide them in finding the joys, sorrows, and meaning of the season!  Their Irish friends, Erin and Mr. O'Sullivan, join the children for an unforgettable adventure!  

Follow along with our poem here:

Helen Steiner Rice

Easter Reflections

With OUR EYES we see

The beauty of Easter

as the earth awakens once more...

With OUR EARS we hear

The birds sing sweetly

to tell us Spring again is here...

With OUR HANDS we pick

the golden daffodils

and the fragrant hyacinths...

But only with OUR HEARTS

can we feel the MIRACLE of GOD'S LOVE

which redeems all men...

And only with OUR SOUL

can we make our 'pilgrimage to God'

and inherit His Easter Gift of ETERNAL LIFE.

Extension Activities:

1. Go on a nature walk! (Bring your nature journal...) Draw and paint the birds and flowers that you observe, native to your region!  Identify the colors of the parts of the birds (throat, breast, nape, crown, etc.) Also, count the petals on the flowers and find out if they followed the Fibonacci sequence. If you post on Instagram, tag @BrilliantMornings so that we can enjoy the beauty you have found! 

2.  To discover more about the Fibonacci sequence, listen to "Tuesday - Finding Fibonacci" Season 1, Episode 7!

3. For a look at  symbolism and analogies on the spiritual aspect of Easter, read Isaiah 53 in scripture (in the Old Testament)...can you find the lamb in this passage?

4. Have you subscribed to Brilliant Mornings? Do you follow the Instagram account @BrilliantMornings?  Please be sure you do both so we can stay connected to you! You are always welcome to ask questions and contribute! Many of our listeners have been featured on our episodes, simply because they reached out, gave reviews, and contacted us! 

 “No!” Claire’s voice was firm. “In this letter," and here she shook the ancient-looking document high over her head, “My great-grandfather gave his cousins possession of his farm in Ireland for the next 90 years; then, he writes that the cousins must give it back to his children IF the children claim it by Saint Patrick’s Day of the 91st year. We’re in the 91st-first year and St. Patrick’s day is almost here!”  Join Claire, her family and friends on an unforgettable trip through Ireland as they experience its poetry, folk music, and stories of potato famine and St. Patrick.  

Edward Lear's limericks you will hear in this episode: 

There was a Young Lady whose nose,

    Was so long that it reached to her toes;

    So she hired an Old Lady,

    Whose conduct was steady,

    To carry that wonderful nose.

There was an Old Man with a beard,

    Who said, "It is just as I feared! -

    Two Owls and a Hen,

    Four Larks and a Wren,

    Have all built their nests in my beard!"

There was an Old Man of Kilkenny,

    Who never had more than a penny;

    He spent all that money,

    In onions and honey,

    That wayward Old Man of Kilkenny.

Take Me Back
Poem by Heidi Illian

Oh God, I am a captive in slavery

Would you please bring me back to my family

I’m taking care of all these sheep, you see,

But I want to fulfill my destiny

God I realize I’ve been selfish too

Hurt other people; didn’t follow you

Been a slave to sin and humanity 

But you’ve set me free and I’m in your family  

I love you now, more with every day, 

Body in chains, soul no longer astray,

And now you say there’s a ship on it’s way,

My escape is here and I don’t have to stay. 

You’ll take me back, you’ll take me back, 

I’m going home cause you’re taking me back.

“I’ve seen a vision in my liberty,

The Irish are begging and calling me

Danger waits around every turn

But I must return for Christianity.” 

I’m going back to Ireland…

I can’t stay silent

Though they may get violent  

I’m going back, God took me back, so there’s no turning back. 

Read St. Patrick's Autobiography Here: https://www.confessio.ie/etexts/confessio_english#

Irish Blessing:

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face;

the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,

may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Opening Music: Lindsey Addonizio, and Sarah and Chris Buteux 

Celebrate love in languages from around the world as we learn about this holiday and the deeper meanings of love! Which types will we hear about in our messages to loved ones - storge, phileo, eros, or agape?


Sources:

1. The Four Loves, by C.S. Lewis
2. https://www.history.com/news/6-surprising-facts-about-st-valentine

Join a tree-chopping experience to learn about how Abraham Lincoln grew up! Although he received little formal education, his upbringing and childhood experiences taught him honesty, perseverance, and a hunger for knowledge and truth. Today we will learn:

1. A first introduction to logic 
2. Euclid’s influence on Lincoln’s systematic reasoning
3. The responsibilities of a lawyer (Interview)
4. An overview of Abraham Lincoln’s Life
5. Famous quotes by Abraham Lincoln 
6. A Gettysburg Address song!

How will you celebrate the ideas of freedom and truth on Abraham Lincoln’s birthday this year?

Check out this book on Abraham Lincoln: 

https://www.amazon.com/Abraham-Lincoln-Ingri-dAulaire/dp/1893103234

Special Extension Activities: 

1. Based on your children’s developmental levels, discuss the following quotes: 

“In the course of my law reading I constantly came upon the word “demonstrate”. I thought at first that I understood its meaning, but soon became satisfied that I did not. I said to myself, What do I do when I demonstrate more than when I reason or prove? How does demonstration differ from any other proof? I consulted Webster’s Dictionary. They told of ‘certain proof,’ ‘proof beyond the possibility of doubt’; but I could form no idea of what sort of proof that was. I thought a great many things were proved beyond the possibility of doubt, without recourse to any such extraordinary process of reasoning as I understood demonstration to be. I consulted all the dictionaries and books of reference I could find, but with no better results. You might as well have defined blue to a blind man. At last I said,- Lincoln, you never can make a lawyer if you do not understand what demonstrate means; and I left my situation in Springfield, went home to my father’s house, and stayed there till I could give any proposition in the six books of Euclid at sight. I then found out what demonstrate means, and went back to my law studies.”

— Abraham Lincoln (c.1863) 

“If A can prove, however conclusively, that he may, of right, enslave B — why may not B snatch the same argument, and prove equally, that he may enslave A?– You say A is white, and B is black. It is color, then; the lighter, having the right to enslave the darker? Take care. By this rule, you are to be slave to the first man you meet, with a fairer skin than your own. You do not mean color exactly?–You mean the whites are intellectually the superiors of the blacks, and, therefore have the right to enslave them? Take care again. By this rule, you are to be slave to the first man you meet, with an intellect superior to your own. But, say you, it is a question of interest; and, if you can make it your interest, you have the right to enslave another. Very well. And if he can make it his interest, he has the right to enslave you.”

(https://www.nps.gov/liho/learn/historyculture/slavery.htm)

2. Math Activities: 

Ages 3-6 - Draw several types of triangles on your board of choice and count their angles and sides.  Draw some triangles with matching angles and side lengths and point that out!

Ages 7-10+ - Draw triangles with various colorful markers. Use a protractor to find their angles!

Add the angles in a triangle and discuss how they will always have a sum of 180.  The study of geometry leads to the stu