Since the spread of the coronavirus and the resulting social distancing measures, there is no doubt – our lives are different. So many aspects of our lives look and feel differently than they were once imagined and planned. The shift in norms and previously-held comforts has required us to view life in a new way.

This change in perspective and a new vantage point has empowered Periwinkle to creatively innovate in collaboration with community partners to further our mission and stay connected with our campers, artists and survivors. As a result, Creativity Connected was launched, a virtual Making A Mark gallery was installed, and Postcards From the Road can now be sent from the comforts of home. The same creativity and innovation is also leading how Periwinkle Day Camp and Camp Periwinkle will virtually take shape this year.

This week’s edition of Make It a Splendid Week features Junior’s poem, “Superhero Giraffe” and Cesar’s artwork, “Giraffe World”. It makes us wonder and think about a giraffe’s perspective and vantage point, since most of them stand 15-20 feet tall!

Superhero Giraffe 

If I were a giraffe, 
I would be orange with blue spots. 
I would spin like a tornado. 
I would eat grass fast,  
like super speed flying. 
I would make people not touch me  
because I’m so fast. 
When I run, I would make a DOOOO sound, so loud.  
I would drink 100 million sips of orange juice.  
And that would make me oranger.  
I would paint the grass blue and eat it
to keep my spots blue. 
– Junior, age 6

With a new view and perspective, Periwinkle has the opportunity to re-imagine and recreate how we operate and realize our mission to positively change the lives of children, young adults, and families who are challenged by cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. What creativity and innovations are stemming in your life as a result of our current reality? Make it a Splendid Week!

This entry is a part of our series “Make it a Splendid Week”! Follow along weekly to enjoy excerpts from The Splendid Review, an anthology of poems, short stories and autobiographies written by talented young writers engaged in the Periwinkle Arts In Medicine Program at Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Centers.