Esprit Canada
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2001
Profile
Age: 3 Journal
June: begins journal July: entertains Jessica and Melanie August: entertains Granny and Papa September: buys Hungry Hound October: begins dance lessons Notable Quotations
On Daddy's birthday cake: "Can you put some little hot fires on it?” On a bell: "Why is the ring not belling?" On seeing Curious George in person at Barnes and Noble: "I didn't know he was real. . . . I'm curious he got out of the book." On family time: "We can swim together like a family date." On Mommy's hair: "Your hair is beautiful. You look just like a cow." On ironing: "I'll spray it. Now you cook it." On Daddy's stubble: "It's crunchy." On Mom's attempts at discipline: "But you're my best friend." On the culinary arts: "Noodles not for eating. They're for spilling." On bumping into something: "Oh, I gotta watch where I'm going." On the radio: "Daddy, you turn this off? I no can hear my puzzle." On getting around: "Daddy, you teach me how to drive?" On her favorite pastime: "I was just clowning around." On the dancing in Singin' in the Rain: "Look, that's like me." On a National Guard Armory: "This is a cool place." On doing a puzzle : "It goes! It goes! Wahoo!" On Baltimore's skyline: "I want to climb up those buildings!" On riding in a New York taxi: "Mommy, we're going fast." On herself: "Yes, I'm a great kid." On prayer etiquette: "Don't gotta say grace for noodles." On family time: "We can swim together, like a family date!" On her current residence (with a hammer in her hand): “I don’t like this house. I like another kind of pretty house.” On her grandparents' one-liners: "Papa and Granny are cracking me up." On her mom's attempts to keep her out of mischief: "You go get some work done." On a secret she was hiding in the playroom: "You stay here and do something with you. . . . Don't go in there." On television: "Let's turn the TV on so I can hear some noise." On behaving: "I was being a little having." On her newborn brother: "He's a good kid." On housekeeping: "I like carpets dirty." Favorite Expressions
Updated June
20, 2002 |
Her endless supply of spirit comes through her diverse other forms of artistic expression. She has long gravitated toward the performing arts, clearly delighting in the response she receives from a live audience. Her early proclivity for singing along with others at church--and, in some cases, launching into impromptu solos--has earned her some small acclaim, as have her interpretive dances, complete with spins and leaps and, on occasion, a final bow. Perhaps more than anything, however, Essie craves the stage. Indeed, her mother has caught her practicing facial expressions--first sad and then ecstatic--in front of the giant mirror that we inexplicably placed in her room. At age 3, she had perfected the part of the bubbly puppy dog, which she mastered with pinpoint accuracy, down to the running around on all fours, lapping with her tongue, and leaping into humans' laps. Though not eligible for a Tony or an Oscar, she garnered three nominations for a Lassie. On some occasions, she has stepped behind the scenes to act as playwright and puppeteer, frequently enacting one-act plays featuring her Fisher-Price Little People. The dialogue in these parlor dramas--"Hey, come here!" "What?" "What doin?" "Once upon a time . . ." "What are you talking about?"--while far from profound, is rife with realism, clearly torn from the pages of her everyday life. Although these shows enjoy a standing engagement at the Canada home, she also has taken them on the road to church, where they sometimes compete with a somewhat less lively performance. Esprit also has dabbled in painting, where she tends to favor abstract expressionism, and her experiments in architecture have produced some impressive--though not always functional--towers. As I have tried to capture in a poem I recently wrote about her, however, Esprit is more than anything a living work of art, one who delights and inspires merely by being. No poem, play, song, or sculpture has moved me as much as her smile or the little things that she says and does. When she sees other children having fun, her face lights up in an indescribably beautiful way, and she rushes to join them. On the other hand, when someone is visibly sad, she turns emphathetic. On occasion, she will invite someone feeling down to play with her and "be happy." I have tried to capture in words some of the experiences we have had with her: a recent Christmas morning, a Halloween party, even a simple walk that she and I enjoyed together. While all the world is her stage, however, I also know that no one can appreciate her beauty as much as her family, who have followed her career from its outset and will always remain her biggest fans.
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In
a few more years, Essie will be able to write her own profile--in iambic
pentameter, I suspect. In the meantime, our little artist is expressing
herself in a number of other ways. Although she has yet to put pen to
paper, for example, she has become quite outspoken, even inspiring us to
record some of her most notable quotations. One of her favorite
expressions concerns her name. While she is good-natured about the
abundance of nicknames we have heaped on her--peanut, nutty, piglet,
pigletti-spaghetti, and a host of others--she is also quick to correct us if
we go too far. Try, for instance, telling her she is "a little
looney" or "a clown," and she is likely to respond with a
polite giggle, "No, I'm Essie." This pride in her name may be
no accident, for when we chose the name Esprit--a French word for
"spirit," "character," "wit," and
"humor"--we had no idea how right we were. At age 3, Esprit
Canada is the most spirited human being I have ever met. She spends her
days running, climbing, laughing, and exploring, and she is constantly
inviting others to join in the fun. She is, in fact, a lot like her
dad. While I am eager to taste all the world, though, Essie wants to
swallow it whole.
Canadas’ Most Wanted
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Spring 2001
Name: Esprit Canada Age: 3 years Height: 3'4" Updated June 20, 2002 |
Esprit hits the gym
"She's pumping iron," the facility warden announced apprehensively in a recent press conference. "We're seeing a hardened criminal becoming harder--and tougher and stronger. We can't keep her here forever, and, when she goes free, America could be in trouble." |
Laurinburg,
NC: Despite her extensive criminal history, Esprit Canada has used her
notorious charm to shorten her time in an Indiana gulag. In January,
she was transfered to a North Carolina facility, where she has developed a
frightening new hobby.
Summer 2001
Name: Esprit Canada
Name: Will Canada
Updated June
20, 2002 |
Esprit rumored to have accomplice
Prison officials, impressed with her boundless energy, assigned the infamous criminal to a road crew. The menial work has not demeaned her, however. Indeed, Canada has insisted on wearing flowered gardening gloves. Far more troubling to officials is the appearance of a mysterious figure rumored to be Canada's new accomplice. After being in hiding for nine months, Will "Butterbean" Canada emerged to pay Esprit several visits in prison. As suggested by the photo below, snapped during one of these visits, the two seem to share an intimate connection. Some think they may even be siblings. Butterbean is suspected of a number of minor offenses, including disturbing the peace, but officials lack the hard evidence to put him away. While they wait for him to make the kind of slip that might lead to an arrest, they have to cope some very real fears of a jail break. "She's got this one under her thumb," a police spokesman said of Canada's relationship with "Butterbean." "It's only a matter of time before she coaxes him into helping her escape." The prospect of a "Peanut"-"Butterbean" partnership has officials on edge. They have placed both individuals under constant surveillance.
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Laurinburg,
NC: Incarcerated for a second time for her involvement in a dollnapping, Esprit
Canada is again playing model prisoner.