Today I'm so pleased to introduce you to Jennifer and Annie and their magical Mariposa Forest. My own kids enjoy their Mariposa Forest letters that arrive in our mailbox every couple of weeks. Sage reads the letters aloud to Lupine, and although his is ten he still very much enjoys the magic in each letter from this magical land. And to Lupine every character and story is captivating and real.
Below is my interview with Jennifer, the writer of these magical tales. Enjoy!
What is your company and how long have you been in business?
The short answer is Mariposa Forest sends seasonal stories from the inhabitants of the forest to your children, by good old fashioned snail mail.
We help create a magical world that is delivered to your doorstep. One that encourages imagination, curiosity, and a connection to the natural world. We also help create excitement as twice a month something special is delivered to the child, addressed to them, just for them. We launched in June of 2012, so we have been at it a little over half a year and are now sending stories all over the world.
What inspired you to go into this line of work?
Both Annie and I are stay at home moms and we were looking for a way to continue staying at home and also channel our creative energies. We are moms first and foremost, but we are also creative, artistic beings and it is important to nurture yourself in order to truly give yourself to your family.
After many cups of tea discussing how we could combine our collective talents for writing and photography, we realized how much our own children loved to get mail and even how rare and exciting it was for us to get mail, other than bills!
We both spend a lot of time in nature (quite often together) and thought that it might be fun to send letters to children from the forest.
My stories combined with Annie’s photographs to give a glimpse, a hint into the magical world that exists in every forest. We played with the idea and eventually Mariposa Forest was born. It seemed like the perfect blend of both of our talents and really, there is nothing better than knowing you are making a child’s day when they open the mailbox and there is something there just for them!
How do you believe you and your business are bringing good into the world?
One of the biggest things for both of us is teaching our children to be connected to the Earth. To get outside daily, to know the seasons, and the little piece of the planet that we call home.
The stories reflect that.
They are stories, yes, but they also talk about the forest, the changes that happen, the small shifts of light, the abundance of life in Spring and Summer and the quietness of Winter.
We have a “Reflection” question on the back of each story. We ask the child to look around and see what they observe, what does their world look like? How is it different from Mariposa Forest? What kind of animals live near them? What kind of birdsong do they hear?
If we can get children to start observing nature, even in an urban setting, then I feel like we have done a bit of good. In a world that moves so fast and is so high tech, we really feel it is necessary to help our children learn to slow down and connect to the planet.
What else should we know?
We have recently started a blog in which we hope to share ideas, articles, and such that have to do with getting out into nature as a family and connecting to the earth. We also have a newsletter that shares much of the same as well as seasonal ideas such as crafts, recipes, and fun articles to give you ideas on how to get outside.
You can download a free audio reading of a story when you subscribe. Finally, we are currently having the stories translated and will be offering them in French in the Spring.
Today Mariposa Forest is offering a generous giveaway to three lucky readers! Leave a comment below for your chance at an introductory package of Mariposa Forest (three mailings).
Comments are now closed. The winners are:
Tracy who said:
"What a wonderful idea, my daughter would love this.",
Margaret who said:
"this sounds lovely -- I know my boys would enjoy this. thank you for the opportunity --", and
and Angela who said:
"My kindergarten class would love to receive mail! What a wonderful idea."
The winners will receive a welcome letter (which lets the child know that something will be arriving for them), the introductory story which is the first story of every new subscription, and a seasonal story that is in the current mailing.
I'll close comments on Monday and select three winners!
