About a week ago, our schoolteacher asked us to write an article for a newspaper, entitled “Celebrate the good things in life.” (You may be familiar with this if you’re too studying English language for GCSE.)  I pondered over this for quite a while, making a list as I go: beautiful flowers, the sunshine at my window, the sound of rainfall, the numerous book I haven’t read, the many musicals I haven’t watch, the millions of questions I still don’t know the answer to, the kind hearted people who helped me so much, the inspiring figures that really made a change in the world, my friends, my family, my cat….

Nature. Curiosity. Compassion. Care. Then I noticed the shocking familiarity of these things and events. It was from the Magic Tree House series, the subseries about finding the “secrets of happiness.” I couldn’t believe my sudden epiphany and immediately went to my cupboard and dusted off my old copy.

“Like the other secrets, it helps us to look outside ourselves. Then we can better see the all the gifts that the world has to offer.”

A quote from Morgen Le Fay, the Camelot library according to the magic tree house series, strike deep into my heart. I quickly jotted down my article but long after I finished I was still struck by the wisdom of Morgen’s word and how it influenced me to perceive “the good things in life,” in the way I did. Maybe I had given the Magic Tree House series too little credit for its lasting impression on my perspectives and opinions on the world.  

The benefits of learning new words and acting as the steppingstones to complicated chapter books aside, the Magic Tree House series seems to be undermined in its ideas and teachings. Though the “secret of happiness” series did influence me the most, for I can still recall the moral of the stories unconsciously after 10 years, I slowly start to other influences.

 Right after Jack and Anne finished their quest at searching for happiness, they were called to spread happiness to the world, by inspiring 4 famous people to “share their gifts with the world.” (This phrase still gives me goosebumps. It is so well written). What made me love the series is how immersive the experience was. This was especially prominent in the Louis Armstrong arc, where the protagonists made Armstrong realize and appreciate his own musical gift. I feel genuinely in love with Digger, his personality, her talents, his situation. He felt, so alive. It might be obvious for us that the book was talking about segregation and civil rights, and we should support it. But when I was little, I actually felt the unfairness and anger at Digger not being able to sit with “us,” “us” being me and the protagonists. It felt so natural and organic.

Whether it is Mozart’s and Armstrong’s musical talents, or Lady Gregory and Charles Dicken’s literature contributions. I think the “share your gifts with the world” idea really sunk in. I did put “inspiring figures” on the list of the good things in my life. I really do attribute my wish to leave a mark with the Magic Tree House series. Even if my contribution might be minute compared with, say, Charles Dickens.

The influence of the series on my perspectives probably didn’t end there, and probably went deeper than I can currently perceive or have written down. I do feel immensely gratified to have this series in my childhood, and would thank it for the constitution of my present perspectives.