Healing Hoppy

Book excerpt: It is a warm, sunny summer day on Frog Pond, but Hoppy the frog just isn’t feeling like himself. He has lost his energy to hop or sing his croaking songs - he seems to have lost his hoppity-hop! What can be done? Hoppy’s mommy takes him to see Caitie the cat, who is a holistic nurse. Caitie recommends that Hoppy and his parents move upstream, to the Healing Pond where little frogs are healthy and strong. Here, all the animals are kept well by their holistic friends. When Hoppy and his parents arrive, they meet Stevie the Skunk, an aromatherapist, who is the first of several new friends. Hopefully the healing gifts shared by all Hoppy’s new friends will help him get his hoppity-hop back. In this children’s story, Hoppy and his family will learn about, aromatherapy, acupuncture, herbal medicine, yoga, mindfulness, and healing touch. This fairytale is set in the Blue Ridge Mountains, particularly the Pisgah Forest of North Carolina – a land lush with Appalachian culture. In addition, little fairies with heart-shaped wings are embedded in the illustrations on pages that depict Dr. Jean Watson’s theory of Caring Science.