I found The Big Orange Splot on my bookshelf yesterday. The book is ripped and has a water stain. I have saved the book even though it is ripped. It was printed in 1977. The book is a Scholastic book. It is only 30 pages. A few words on each page with large illustrations.
The book tells the story of Mr. Plumbeam. He lives on a street where all the houses are the same. A seagull flying over Mr. Plumbean’s house drops a can of bright orange paint on the roof of Mr. Plumbean’s house.
Mr. Plumbeam didn’t paint over the big orange splot on his roof. The neighbors were not happy. They liked all of the houses on their street to look the same.
Someone said, “Mr. Plumbean, we wish you’d get around to painting your house.”
“O.K.,” said Mr. Plumbean.
Mr. Plumbean painted his house. He used blue paint, white paint, red paint, yellow paint, green paint and purple paint. He painted his house to look like a rainbow, a jungle, an explosion.
The neighbors were not happy. They complained to Mr. Plumbeam.
My house is me and I am it. My house is where I like to be and it looks like all my dreams.
Mr. Plumbean in The Big Orange Splot
One by one the neighbors come to talk him out of having his house look different. After they talk to him they go home and …
Well, I am not going to tell you what Mr. Plumbean’s neighbors do. You will have to get The Big Orange Splot
If you were Mr. Plumbean’s neighbor,would you have told him to paint over the big orange splot? Would you be upset if his house didn’t look like all the other houses on your street?
When you follow your dream people will try to stop you. They don’t want you to be different.
Ignore them. Be different.
Pamela Hodges
What are you dreaming right now? Do you want to take tap-dancing lessons? Do you want to go back to school? Do you want to shave your head and tattoo ,”I love my mother,” on it?
It’s okay to be different. It is okay to be twice as old as all the students at college. It is okay to learn how to tap dance when you have gray hair. If you want to get a tattoo on your head, go for it. It’s your head. It’s your life.
Maybe I’ll paint a big orange splot on the roof of my house.
What are you dreaming? Are you afraid?
Please tell me in the comments I would love to chat.
P.S. The Amazon link is an affiliate link. It won’t cost you anymore money to buy the book here and the pennies Amazon pays me helps to pay for kitty litter. I have four cats and seven litter boxes.
