Reader Views welcomes Tania and Lana Bloch, sister co-authors of the modern classic children's book "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" Tania and Lana are being interviewed by Juanita Watson, Assistant Editor of Reader Views.
Juanita: Reader Views is happy to have the opportunity to talk with the two of you today. Your book "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" is in its second edition and being considered a modern classic in the children's book genre. Would you start by telling readers what your story is about?
Tania: "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" is an Award-Winning children's picture book which is considered a fable, since it has several deeper messages and is full of animated characters. The setting takes place in the beautiful Red Rock Canyons of Sedona, Arizona. The tale of Bonnie Bee and Benny Butterfly and their magical meeting "one calm spring day" introduces us to the wonders of their individual worlds. Bonnie shares that she works for the Queen pollinating flowers and making honey, while Benny explains that butterflies are smart enough to change form through metamorphosis. They become best friends but, to their dismay, the Queen discovers their secret meetings. Consequently, the Queen grounds Bonnie to the hive preventing her from seeing Benny. Benny is distraught; however, through the power of friendship and love, the two find their way back together and eventually marry "in love's harmony." Their offspring are Buzzy Bizzy and Butterbee twins with cuddly bee bodies and bee-dazzling butterfly wings. The Butterbees represent tolerance, positive "bee-attitudes" and creativity sharing the amazing talents of both bees and butterflies! "They float like butterflies and buzz like bees..."
Juanita: What inspired the Butterbee idea?
Tania: The genesis of the Butterbee Concept was inspired by our own childhood background. Although we have lived in the States for many years, we were born and raised in South Africa in Umtata, Transkei - the same birth place as Nelson Mandela. While growing up we witnessed, firsthand, the intolerance of apartheid or racial segregation. This situation served to create our deep belief in tolerance and inclusion of all regardless of race, culture or religion. The incredible diplomacy of Nelson Mandela eliminated apartheid; however, many people in South Africa as well as populations world-wide are still suffering from the extremes of discrimination, intolerance, poverty, illness and lack of education. The Butterbee Concept is timely since there is so much in the media about intolerance. I am devoted to sharing the importance of tolerance which leads to more peace in the world. For example, while studying psychology in college I was president of the International League of Friendship which focused on "Unity through Diversity." It was lovely to share music, food and dance from many different countries and honor the unique traditions of each culture. We all can learn so much from our differences to make the world a happier place.
Lana: Our business, Bee Unlimited, Inc was born from a dream I had about a bee with the world in its wings. Curious about the bees in general, I began to do research and discovered that aerodynamically the bee is not supposed to fly but it does! This is symbolic of overcoming life obstacles and that "anything is possible." In 1995 I was involved in a near-fatal accident caused by a troubled teenager grabbing the steering wheel of the car. Both my legs were crushed and the woman in the other car sustained a devastating head trauma, while the boy was only slightly injured. I endured excruciating pain and many months lying flat on my back. Nevertheless, with faith and determination I learned how to walk again and slowly heal the emotional wounds. Why was this teenager so unhappy? This tragedy was another impetus for writing "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" Butterbees inspire children to overcome challenges and tap into their innate gifts developing healthy self-esteem at an early age so they may grow into happier teens and adults.
Juanita: How did your collaboration begin?
Tania: Many years ago I was in a relationship with someone from a different culture and was confronted with issues that arose when marriage was considered. In the course of a conversation with Lana, she mentioned that our offspring would be "Butterbees." She explained that the bees lived on one side of the river and the butterflies lived on the other side of the river but they were forbidden to cross over to play together. However, one day a bee and a butterfly decided to explore what was on the other side of the river. They became friends, fell in love, finally got married and had butterbees as their offspring. I was very inspired by the Butterbee idea and wrote the original story with ease and flow. The story was written in prose for an older age group with a slightly different story line incorporating a little boy named Beema who was from a blended marriage.
Lana: After a period of time, I edited the original story into rhyme. From then on we collaborated together on the book, illustrations and Butterbee plush toys. Since the Butterbees are a combination of both bees and butterflies, they are metaphors for all the children of the world to honor similarities and celebrate differences. The point is that today there are many blended families in the United States so it is important to have an open attitude to this phenomena. I am grateful that the Butterbee idea sprung into my head, since now we have the Butterbee book, plush toys and pluppettes (plush puppets). As we worked on the Butterbee Concept, it evolved to incorporate the themes of tolerance, creativity and positive "bee messages."
Juanita: What is the age range for "How Butterbees Came to Bee!"?
Tania: The age range is for children three to eight. However, the story is also considered a fable for older children and adults, since there are deeper messages and morals accompanied by metaphor / symbolism through the animated characters.
Juanita: Who are the characters of your book? How do they contribute to the significance of the storyline? What do they represent?
Tania: I will share about the characters I usually play when we facilitate "Butterbee Buzz" workshops for children and Lana can address the characters she plays. I love butterflies and act as Benny Butterfly who explains his amazing transformation through the metamorphosis. He relates his life cycle with a "bee message" for each stage incuding the caterpillar - "bee smart", the chrysalis - "bee safe" and the butterfly - "bee awake" and "bee alive." In essence, children are like butterflies with a beautiful soul that embraces change and growth.
The Queen Bee is the character who demonstrates intolerance causing separation between Bonnie and Benny. However, when the Butterbees are born the Queen has a change of heart since she realizes how much she loves Bonnie. The Queen makes has a shift in her awareness and connects with her inner being. There comes a time in our lives where we choose to turn inwards to find our inner joy and acceptance so we can accept others.
"The Queen had a happy and smiling face,
Now that she had found her own knowing place."
Hearing the news of the Butterbees birth,
She began to dance with glee and mirth."
Lana: Bonnie Bee shares her gifts of pollinating the flowers and making honey. As mentioned before, the symbol of the bee is that "anything is possible", since aerodynamically the bee should not be able to fly. Its wings are too small and delicate for its body, yet despite these limitations, it takes easily to the air. We teach children to "never give up." Ultimatley, the bee represents overcoming adversity and focusing on the sweetness of life and abundance (honey).
Bizzy and Buzzy Butterbee are the twin offspring of Bonnie Bee and Benny Butterfly. Butterbees represent the best of both worlds with the gifts and talents of both bees and butterflies. They are metaphors for all the children of the world to foster tolerance and acceptance of oneself and others as well as inspire children to tap into their creativity.
"We bet you're bessed with talents too.
Why don't you try to name a few?"
Uqualla Quail is the "wise one" who brings spiritual teachings into the story line. She gives advice to Benny about following his heart and intuition.
"Bee patient, she said, follow your heart.
Listen inside to your knowing part."
When the Butterbees are born Uqualla continues to share words of wisdom with the Butterbees about intuition, the inner spirit and acceptance.
"Inside there is a knowing place,
Where lives the soul and loving grace.
It helps us when we're feeling sad,
To know these feeling aren't so bad.
It helps us see others as they are,
Accepting all creatures near and far."
Juanita: What are the underlying messages in your book?
Tania: The underlying messages in the book relates to three main themes:
1) To foster tolerance and acceptance - honoring similarities and celebrating differences.
2) To teach positive "bee messages" such as bee kind, bee patient, bee honest etc.
3) To inspire creativity tapping into gifts and talents to enhance self-esteem.
Juanita: What are the positive and uplifting sayings that the Butterbees teach readers? How did you come up with these very catchy messages that are obviously great fun for children?
Tania: The positive and uplifting sayings that the Butterbees teach readers are "bee messages" which are scattered throughout the book in the illustrations. We came up with the idea by using a pun on the bee. The "bee messages" are related to ways of bee-ing or attitudes that we all can benefit from when we practice them more consistently - to mention a few - bee kind, bee joyful, bee creative, bee accepting and just bee you!
Lana: Here are some of the Butterbees' bee messages from the book:
"Hive and seek is our favorite game.
Finding "bee ways" that we can name.
Bee helpful, bee wise, bee loving and true.
Bee happy, bee kind and just bee you!"
Juanita: What changed in your second edition? Would you tell us about your award-winning backpack special, and the various awards "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" has won over the years?
Tania: Our first edition Butterbee book was a smaller book with our own illustrations that a graphic artist computerized. Although the pictures are cute, the second edition has David Michener's illustrations which are animated and give the characters life. Some of the text was only slightly changed.
The award-winning backpack package consists of a Butterbee book and the Butterbee twin plush toys Bizzy (the girl with pink wings) and Buzzy (the boy with purple wings). In addition, we decided to make the toys more interactive and are happy to say we have Butterbee Pluppettes (plush puppets) arriving soon.
"How Butterbees Came to Bee!" is the recipient of the following Awards:
1) The Benjamin Franklin Award - 2002. Bill Fisher Award for Best First Book Fiction by an independent publisher.
2) The i-Parenting Media Award - 2004. Butterbees won two i-Parenting Media Awards. One for "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" and the other
for the Butterbee backpack book/toy combination.
3) The Mom's Choice Award - 2005. Judged by an influential group of women including Julie-Agner Clark, creator of Baby Einstein.
4) The Parent-to-Parent Adding Wisdom Award - 2005.
Juanita: Would you comment on David Michener's wonderful illustrations that bring the Butterbees to life? How did he come on board for this project?
Tania: David Michener, the illustrator, was a key artist for Walt Disney Studio for 35 years, until his retirement in 1987. He directed several animated films for Hanna Barbera. We were honored to have him re-illustrate our original Butterbee book because he really brought all the characters to life. David came aboard the Butterbee Project in a very synchronistic manner -- it was meant to bee! Lana can share the how we connected with him.
Lana: I had met Karen Grencik, a book agent, at a seminar. She fell in love with Butterbee book and toy concept so she agreed to be our agent for a period of time. One day she was outside her house when she saw an elderly man passing by on his daily walk. They began to chat and she asked him what his line of work was. He replied that he was a retired Disney animator. Karen's ears perked up and asked if he would wait while she ran inside to get the first edition Butterbee book and Butterbee plush toy. He thought the Butterbee concept was great and suggested that the illustrations would be more effective if they were real not computerized. One thing led to another and in a few weeks he agreed to illustrate "How Butterbees Came to Bee!"
Juanita: What makes the Butterbees story such a popular choice in children's books?
Tania: I think educators, parents and grandparents are drawn to books that inspire children and have uplifting messages. Some adults have commented that there is so much negativity and violence in the media and in movies. They appreciate that "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" is a simple, fun, light-hearted tale that expresses positive values and attitudes that they want children to learn and practice in their lives.
Juanita: What are some comments you hear from children reading your book?
Tania: Here are some comments directly quoted from the children's work sheets:
"What I found interesting was when Bonnie told the truth to the Queen." - Brittan
"I like the Butterbees when they are born - they are cute." - Caitli
"Follow your heart wherever it leads you." - Sarah
"My favorite part of the book is when Benny and Bonnie had kids." - Anely
"I liked the attitudes like happy, smart, safe, prompt because it shows how a person feels. - Amanda
"I learned lots of attitudes like bee kind and bee safe. I learned about the life cycle of the butterfly. I like that you used rhyming words in the book.
I especially liked saying , "buzz hum, buzz hum, buzz hum hum hum." It made the story more fun. How did you make up the story? How did you think
about doing a butterfly mixed with the bee?"- Denise
Lana: Many kids have written comments about writing more Butterbee books.
Juanita: Would you tell us about your "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" workshops and presentations? What is your company's vision?
Tania: Along with our book and Butterbee toys, we facilitate "Butterbee Buzz" Creative Workshops in schools, stores, botanical gardens, museums and other venues. Our target groups are kindergarten, first, second and third grades. However, we have been invited to present to middle school kids, educators and the elderly. We adjust the level of the workshop depending on the age group. For the younger kids we dress up in bee/butterfly costumes and read the Butterbee story in an animated way using plush toys and puppets. Sometimes we have the kids play the parts of the characters while the rest of the audience repeats the phrase "Buzz Hum, Buzz Hum, Buzz Hum Hum Hum" when we turn a page. The workshops are interactive, since we facilitate fun sing-a-long songs, discussions about interests, talents and the positive "bee messages." Other activities involve stretching and breathing which helps concentration as well as creative visualization, movement, writing and drawing to stimulate right brain creativity.
When we facilitate older kids and adults we discuss the concepts of fable, allegory, metaphor, symbolism, onomatopoeia etc. We encourage the awareness of the deeper truths in the book and how to integrate these messages into every day life. They participate in a visualization process and creative writing. In addition, we explain the process of self-publishing and inventing a product with the purpose of inspiring othersto take action on their ideas and have them manifest.
Sometimes we focus on current events including the Tsunami in South East Asia and Hurricane Katrina. We had the children write a "bee compassionate" letter with a butterbee drawing to a child in a disaster area. The notes were very empathetic! Here are same sample letters and poems we collected to make a booklet titled "Voices of Compassion" during "Read Across America Week" from Cocopah Middle School - 2006.
"I am so sorry that you had to go through that terrible incident. "Bee cheerful, brave and happy. Make the most out of your life and put the past behind you.
You have the power to "bee awake" and make a difference. Do what you love best and never give up no matter what. "Bee cheerful." - Alexanrdra
"As you are probably experiencing right now Hurricane Katrina- this is probably the worst hurricane that hit. But you stayed strong as my parents always told
me 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger' and in your case it is true. You are truly a survivor." Cocopah Middle School and me will pray for you. - Katie
When you have a frown,
Turn that sad face upside down,
Sure sometimes things go bad,
One thing that won't get you far is getting mad.
Never give up hope,
There is always a way to cope,
Try hard to fill your heart with glee,
Be just like the Butterbee!
Daniel
BELIEVE
Believe in the impossible
Everything will be OK
Love family and friends
I believe in you guys
Everyone will be alright
Very lucky to have survived
Everything counts.
Stone
HOPE
Hopeful to become bigger than life
Optimistic towards the future
Peacefulness in the soul
Energy in a new beginning
Shelly
Lana: Our company's vision is for The Butterbee Project to go from a grassroots level to soar and become a household name. This will be accomplished by a company picking up the Butterbees to publish a series as well as producing an animated movie / educational TV series, and other licensing /merchandising. We want the message of "tolerance and unity through diversity" to reach people from all walks of life and to also give back to children's charities.
Juanita: What was your favorite part of the "sisterly" collaborative writing process? Do you have any plans for any other books?
Tania: There are two sayings that I have picked up from various seminars. One is "teamwork makes the dream work" and the other is "two is the power of eleven." Although at times we have our differences, having two people working on a project has added to the creative process. Also, we have been an immense support for one another - when one has not been able to work on the project the other has taken over and vice versa. Although we are currently fulfilling the dream, we need more team members in order to reach children on a larger scale- nationally and globally.
Lana: We have plans to write a series of Butterbee books related to inspirational themes of tolerance, creativity and positive bee attitudes.
Several synopses are in the works.
Juanita: How can readers find out more about you and the Butterbees?
Tania: Our website is http://www.butterbees.com. (In process of being re-vamped). Individuals can call to order "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" and Butterbee Pluppettes or schedule "Butterbee Buzz" Creative Workshops at 480-220-4441 / 1-888-321-1717 or e-mail bee-4-wellness@cox.net / beeunlimited@cox.net
Juanita: Tania and Lana, thank you for sharing your thoughts with us today. It has been a pleasure hearing about your fantastic book and the wider Butterbees vision. Your message is universal and timely, and we wish you all the best in making the Butterbees a household name. Do you have any last thoughts for your readers today?
Lana: I want to mention that we are very excited to have the Butterbee Pluppettes (plush puppets) arriving in early May '07. Also, we would like our readers to know that "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" has been endorsed by Mark Victor Hansen best-selling co-author of "Chicken Soup for the Soul."
"Read and absorb this superb book with your children.
I love it! It shares truth and inspiration."
Finally, thank you to Juanita and Reader Views for the interview and to all our readers "Just Bee You!"
Tania: Thank you for this opportunity to share the Butterbees. We have birthed and nurtured the Butterbee Concept with "How Butterbees Came to Bee!" and the amazing positive Butterbee characters. It is our dream that the Butterbees go to the next level and soar so that the message of tolerance touches children's hearts and the child in every adult. The Butterbees message to the world is to help uplift humanity and to "soothe the sting of intolerance" in a light, fun way. Children are our future - through the Butterbees essence we can give back by "Positively Pollinating the World One Child at Time!"
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