Flat Harrison's Visit

In 1964, Jeff Brown published his children's book titled "Flat Stanley." Illustrated by Tomi Ungerer, the book describes the adventures of Stanley Lambchop, a small boy who is accidentally flattened when a large bulletin board falls on him. Stanley now finds he can enter rooms by sliding under doors, can be used as a kite, and visit friends by mailing himself in an envelope. Brown continued the adventures of Flat Stanley in a series of books, but the concept of a flat little boy has also continued through school projects.

The first Flat Stanley Project was started in 1995 by Dale Hubert, a third grade schoolteacher in Canada. Beginning by reading the book, students created paper Flat Stanleys and took them on adventures - keeping a journal of the places and activities. The journals were given to others and were asked to add their own adventures with Flat Stanley. Variations of this concept have been used in classrooms throughout Canada, the US, and the world.

It was through a school project that Flat Harrison came to visit Wilmington, North Carolina. A third grade class in Alabama read the Flat Stanley book and the children cutout and colored their own flat person naming each one after themselves. Afterwards, each child mailed their flat person to a friend or relative asking them to take the flat person with them and take photos of the places and things that they did together. A journal or diary was to be kept documenting the visit. The flat person, photos, and journal were then mailed back to the teacher, so the class could discuss the travels and adventures of the students' flat people.

If you have not read the original "Flat Stanley" book, Stanley does not remain flat forever. Tiring of the attention Stanley is getting, his younger brother Arthur uses a football air pump to return Stanley to his old self.

— Dan Hardison


Flat Harrison's Journal:
Read or print PDF

Where the Water Falls

Haiku and image by Dan Hardison
Photo: Fall Creek Falls State Park, East Tennessee


Simply Haiku, Autumn 2009, vol 7 no 3.

Waters of the River

My being
is as the waters of a river;
passing through time and change
and creations of God
and man
that line my way.
Ever changing, ever moving,
pursuing paths
not always of my choosing . . .
traveling at a pace
not always of my heart's desire,
toward some obscure horizon;
some uncertain destiny.

Like the river,
I am moved by powers
I cannot command;
sometimes to linger
in desolate and ugly places
'til I become
a part of what they are . . .
and their look
is on my face . . .
Then suddenly to be swept
past things of beauty,
things of worth,
too fast to grasp . . .
too fast to comprehend.

My life
is as the waters of a river
and I cannot change my course.
Perhaps, there was a time,
somewhere in the beginning,
but not now.
So I will take the path I must
toward whatever seas await me.

— Jim Metcalf
From his book “In Some Quiet Place.”

Photo by Dan Hardison
Tellico Plains, Tennessee

Also available:
Read or print PDF

Postcard: The River Front

Wilmington, North Carolina
(unused - undivided back, early 1900's)


In earlier times, towns were settled along the banks of a river to take advantage of the river's use for transportation and to move commerce. Warehouses, naval stores, and docks would line the banks of the river. Even though the river itself provided a means of travel, many rivers also presented the problem of crossing from one side to the other. Such is the history of Wilmington, North Carolina, on the Cape Fear River.

Wilmington was first settled in the 1720s and was important not only for its location on the Cape Fear River, but also its closeness to the Atlantic Ocean where the Cape Fear flows. The earliest means of crossing the river was by oar-powered flatboat ferries. Ferries of various types continued to operate on the river into the 1930s carrying passengers, goods, and later automobiles. The first bridge in Wilmington to cross the Cape Fear River did not appear until 1929 and like the ferries, there was a toll to cross.

As the city grew, so did its need for crossing the river. Today there is the Cape fear Memorial Bridge that opened in 1969, and the Isabel S. Holmes Bridge that opened in 1979. There are currently plans to build a third bridge, which ironically would be a toll bridge like the earlier bridges and ferries.

Like many river towns of today, Wilmington's riverfront has changed from that of a working riverfront to one of condos, retail shops, restaurants, pleasure boats, and tourists. But while those in a rush can take to the bridges to hurriedly get from one side of the river to the other, one can also take to the river by tour boat or river taxi to enjoy the beauty of the river at the leisurely pace of those early ferries.

— Dan Hardison

A Splash of Color

Haiku and image by Dan Hardison
Photo: Hampstead, North Carolina


Simply Haiku, Autumn 2009, vol 7 no 3.