Vernon woman puts a new twist on ‘Mother Goose’

By Scott Baker



Most people would tell you there isn’t very much you can learn from a goose. Those people have obviously never met Oliver.

Oliver, a domesticated Sebastopol goose, is the pet of Vernon resident Leesa Beckmann. While Beckmann says there aren’t many people who would keep a goose as an indoor pet, she lives with Oliver and takes him nearly everywhere she goes (along with a healthy supply of diapers).

Beckmann says that Oliver is an inspiration to her, as she has written three children’s books starring the flightless fowl. The first, “Oliver’s Dandelion Wishes,” is a rhyming book for the very young; “A Million Monarchs Munching Milkweed and a Goose!” is a learning book about the life cycle of the monarch butterfly; the latest, “Oliver’s Search for Miss Matilda and her Murky Mud Puddle,” recounts the goose’s quest to find Vernon’s historic woolly mammoth.

In a recent trip to Rolling Hills Primary School, Beckmann used her latest book to start a cross-curricular discussion with Linda Ukson’s 3rd grade class. After listening to Beckmann read the rhyming story about Vernon and some of the town’s geography and history, the class was full of questions.

Ukson used the opportunity to touch on lessons in the writing and revision process, geography, history, photography and science.

Beckmann says Oliver has “imprinted” on her and “thinks he is human.” For this reason, she gives him very human qualities in her books.

In his search for Matilda, for example, Oliver drives his blue jalopy down some familiar Vernon roads and past town landmarks, including High Point Monument, the Black Creek site, the Appalachian Trail, Wawayanda State Park, the National Wildlife Refuge and Mastodon Lake—where Matilda the mastodon was excavated in 1954.

A friendly squirrel then teaches Oliver that he can find Matilda at the New Jersey State Museum: “She hasn’t been hiding! What a wild goose chase you’re on! / Didn’t you know that Matilda’s long gone? / She was found here in Vernon over five decades ago! / If you still want to meet her there’s a place you can go.”

Ukson was happy to have Beckmann come in and “share the challenges and rewards of being a writer and a photographer” with her class.

Beckmann explained to the young writers that “you really have to be inspired by something” in order to write a great story, though she was quick to add that “inspiration can be right in your backyard,” as she found it in the history of her “wonderful and splendid” hometown.

Beckmann has had several requests for her self-published book, most notably from the New Jersey State Museum gift shop, but she says her true passion is sharing her work with students.

Beckmann and Oliver are available for readings by contacting hatchabutterfly@yahoo.com or 973-919-6988.