Inferring my way into fall

Some people dream of vacationing in the Bahamas. Others save up for Hawaii or Cancun. Not me. I want to go to the Sleepytime Herbal Tea box lid. The one with the smiling bear resting comfortably before a golden fire with a chubby teapot, muffins and a jar of honey nearby.

Ah … I can feel the snuggly comfort already: feet up on a footstool, and a steaming cup of tea warming my hands while the winter wind blusters around my snug little house.

But wait, you say. It’s a hundred degrees outside. School just started and it’s only September. And the “ber” of the month isn’t even here yet.

True, but I’ve been teaching my sixth-grade literature class that one must infer to get the whole picture – to read between the lines, if you will. And when I reached for the Sleepytime Herbal Tea box in the pantry last night, I realized that I could infer several things in its design.

The New Scholastic Dictionary of American English defines infer as, “to understand or conclude on the basis of various facts, impressions, judgments, etc; deduce from evidence and experience …”

When we open a book, we bring past experiences with us. They help us understand, predict or empathize. They help us to infer. For example, the sleepy little bear on the tea box lid has no mice in his home. See the rotund orange tabby curled on the embroidered rug?

The radio on a small table tells me the cottage is blessed with electricity. And this homeowner plans ahead, for a basket of kindling sits by the hearth, right next to a pile of firewood.

Sleepy Bear has a green thumb, albeit hairy, for a lovely philodendron thrives by the window. He is a tidy bear, and cleans up after himself. See the pewter cup and plate near the potted plant? And though I see no books, I’ll bet he likes to read. No television. No telephone! No laptop or desktop computer. I see peace and restfulness and yes, quiet.

What teacher wouldn’t crave such a setting, or parent, for that matter?

So you summer lovers out there, enjoy your final days of triple-digit temperatures. Me, I’m watching the outdoor thermometer and inferring quite a bit from the occasional yellow leaf that settles on the lawn beneath our big mulberry tree.

Give me a hot cup of tea, an over-stuffed chair and a cozy hearth any day.