"He that plants trees loves others beside himself." ~~Thomas Fuller
Hi all,

Since we're sandwiched between Earth Day and Arbor Day, I thought another environmentally-focused newsletter was due.  So here goes!

God bless,
Jenni
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Back in JABB 435, I listed ways the Dyeland characters might celebrate these twin holidays.  Given they have at least three worlds to care for (Earth, Dyeland, El-Chanan), I imagine they have an abundance of ways to protect their planets.  So here's ten more!
Top Ten *More* Ways Dyelanders and Friends Are Celebrating Earth Day and Arbor Day

10.  They'll dry their clothes via line drying, not a clothes dryer.  Bonus: Opportunities to admire the AODs' flannel, white, green, etc. shirts!

9.  They'll save some electricity by enjoying candlelit meals.  Bonus: Ooh la la.

8.  With their production of The Secret Garden coming up, Emma and Peter will be sure to promote "green-ness" during its run.  They'll organize pre-show talks about earth-friendly topics like gardening, recycling, and so on and have a few activities for the kids like planting bee-friendly flowers and such.

7.  Those with lawns will learn to embrace the weeds rather than use pesticides.  For one, some have medicinal use.  For another, many are more attractive than grass if people would just get past the "weed" label.  And, finally, what's cuter than lil kids running around blowing dandelions and shrieking with glee?

6.  Going forward, everyone will take a cue from Clay and Yosef and buy their significant others cut flowers only sparingly.  Bring on the butterfly bushes, rose bushes, and other living flowers!

5.  Andrew will buy JenniAnn a herd of rescue goats for their anniversary on Tuesday.  They'll rent them out to their friends (for free) as the ultimate green lawnmower.  The goats will be happy and whomever usually mows will have more quality time!

4.  They can repurpose their wine and ginger ale bottles into bottle trees and trellises. 

3.  Not gonna get too spoilery but once I (finally!) finish the latest story, you'll see that Dyeland's population is gonna go up a bit which means more building.  They'll commit to planting two trees for every one that gets cut down.

2.  Throughout the year, the Friends will expose their little ones to the awesomeness of nature so that they grow up cherishing Earth, Dyeland, and El-Chanan and wanting to protect them and help them flourish for generations to come.

1.  As with last year, all the Friends will take some time to reflect on the beauty of creation and thank God for the beauty and wonder of it all.
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Nature Trivia

See how many of the environmentally themed Dyeland and TBAA trivia questions you can answer!  Answers are at the bottom of this page.

1.  The Dyeland portal used to be in a certain type of tree before Joshua moved it to the gazebo.  What sort of tree was it?

2.  Where were Maryam, Yosef, and Yeshua living when Yosef got a rose bush for his wife?

3.  What sort of flower is Gloria associated with?  Hint: It's also the reason behind Joshua's petname for her: CB.

4.  John/Yohannan gifted Violeta with a stone from a famous river.  Which river? 

5.  What was the name of the scientist in TBAA's "The Good Earth"?

6.  Among the Friends is a family who all have plant-based names.  List the three members of that family. 

7.  The character of Taylor was introduced in what TBAA episode with a Shakespearean phrase that originally referenced a flower as its title?

8.  Which character retold a faulty parable about a rose to the female Friends who then witnessed Joshua completely subverting it?

9.  Name the character who unwittingly stole a carving of a flower from their neighbor boy.

10.  In which family do many of the female members have night/moon-themed names?
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This newsletter is dedicated to John Dye for inspiring the Dyeland stories.  I envision Dyeland and El-Chanan as being much more utopian than Earth in the sense that the wear and tear hasn't been as great in those places.  It's made me more aware of the bits of utopia left here on Earth.  I'm also dedicating this to the two ducks that wandered into my yard as I wrote this.  Because they're cute and remind me of Violeta!


JABB Portal
JABB TOC
JABB 462

1.  willow tree, 2.  Egypt, 3.  cherry blossom, 4.  Jordan, 5.  Emmett Rivers, 6. Lily, Azalea, and Basil Thornton, 7. "An Angel by Any Other Name," 8.  Kylie, 9.  Maryam (from Yosef), 10.  the Al-Mitras and related (Isra, Aiyla, Badriya, and Belle)

(Photo Credits: The photographs used on this page are from Touched by an Angel and owned by CBS Productions, Caroline Productions, and Moon Water Productions. They are not being used to seek profit.)