Michele Mahon at home in Ocean Ridge with her book, published this year by Austin Macauley and available in paperback for $9.95 on Amazon. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
Michele Mahon of Ocean Ridge didn’t set out to write a children’s book. It kind of just happened during a time when she was doing substitute teaching.
“There would be breaks and I would just start working on stories,” said Mahon. “The kids always loved me and they wanted to help me write.
“So, I started writing and asking the kids what ingredients they wanted to put in, and they would say, ‘Put some cherries in there,’ or ‘Put some chocolate.’ And I would write their input.”
What came out of it was Unimaginable Ingredients for Shmoogily, a compilation of eight stories, all but one of which are based on true experiences.
“The first one was about how our dog escaped in the woods and we had to go find him. So that became Lost in the Woods,” Mahon said. “But the one I made up was the one they liked best.” That one was about a kid who was afraid to speak in class so he drinks a potion that cures the problem.
A dancer since she first started taking ballet lessons as a young girl, Mahon has put together a presentation for children that involves both reading and dancing. But she has encountered resistance when she has pitched her services to local outlets such as schools and libraries.
“The Delray Beach library told me, ‘No, we have our librarians read stories to the kids.’ But this is different.”
Mahon’s big adventure involving dance came when she spent six months training in Atlantic City for a show in the Bahamas, traveling between Nassau and Freeport to work with Bahamian dancers.
“After two years I had to come home because I had a husband,” she said. “I quit the show in May and was pregnant in July. Then it was ‘OK, what do I do with this kid?’ Then I became a mother.”
Mahon spends her summers in Boston. She and her husband, Paul, who is retired, have three children: daughter Raisha, who teaches families and the nursing staff how to use respiratory equipment at three hospitals in Boston; daughter Sachian, a public school teacher in Boston; and son Brienne, who lives in Manhattan and is vice president of instruction for Five Iron Golf.
— Brian Biggane
Q: Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has influenced you?
A: Dorchester, Massachusetts. I went to the Sarah Greenwood School. I had the same teacher as my father, but this time we watched and waited as her teeth were about to fall out as she spoke.
I grew up in a three-family house while my dad was making his first venture into real estate. I played double-dutch jump rope and Red Rover and would hear my mother scream “Michele, where are you? Get in this house,” every night. Transistor radios were blasting, kids were hopscotching, I was enthralled by the neighborhood music and cultures. How could I not be influenced? I was young and watched and listened and danced. I continued my education and graduated from Brookline High School, where I am so fortunate to keep in touch with a lot of old friends.
Q: What professions have you worked in? What professional accomplishments are you most proud of?
A: It seems everything I did came late, but I did it. I first recall training to work in reservations and the information desk in Dallas with American Airlines, and due to layoffs, I wound up with Delta. Then I got my real estate license for Massachusetts. I did this while substitute teaching in Milton, Massachusetts, where my three kids went to school.
My dance career began in Boston with a show named Pouff, then came a solo spot in Remember Old Scollay Square in a dinner theater, the Chateau de Ville. Finally, I worked for the Resorts International hotel chain doing The Crazy Gang show with the wonderful Bahamian dancers.
What I am most proud of is I went to UMass-Boston and earned a degree in humanities and elementary education, making me the first in my family to graduate college. A few years later I received my master’s degree in moderate disabilities from Eastern Nazarene College in Quincy, Massachusetts, while teaching in Boston public schools. This led me to dance programs and choreography. I still do substitute teaching and writing.
Q: What advice do you have for a young person seeking a career today?
A: Life is a stage which is OK to fall off of. That is how we learn. We try to do what we think we like, and the opportunities seem to arrive unexpectedly. The next thing you know you may love what comes. Change makes life interesting and in the process comes versatility.
Q: How did you choose to live in Ocean Ridge?
A: Originally my separated parents lived with their interesting others in Kings Point in west Delray Beach. While visiting those fabulous facilities I bought a condo that was for sale across the street from my mom and stayed there until they passed.
Soon after that I was with my brother driving up and down A1A looking for a place to park to go to the beach. We finally found one and were walking around and I spotted a gazebo, then looked and saw some condos. I checked with a Realtor and a couple were for sale. I also looked on the Intracoastal but sent pictures to my kids and they said, “Mom, you can’t swim in the Intracoastal. Go for the beach!” So I did.
Q: What is your favorite part about living in Ocean Ridge?
A: What a beach! What a location! It makes me smile as I walk and see the palm trees and feel the ocean breezes (some days not so much). But I love all the little creatures I say hi to on my walks. I have met many wonderful people. Every day is a happy hour!
Q: What book are you reading now?
A: Honestly, I don’t read books. I love the Smithsonian articles on travel, current issues and its firsthand reporting. I love the National Geographic; it has a kids’ magazine that helps them learn about the environment. The fabulous photographs capture your imagination and draw you into the articles.
Q: What music do you listen to when you want to relax? When you want to be inspired?
A: It’s really funny because as I get older and remember lyrics to songs that I liked and danced to, I realize I never listen to the words. For relaxing, Luther Vandross, the Beatles, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, and the Isley Brothers all told beautiful stories. When I dance it’s to rhythm and blues, Motown, funk and soul. I like “get down on it,” “can you boogie?” and “I bow wow wow yippee yo yippee yeah.” Also “I love music, any kind of music.”
Q: Have you had mentors in your life? Individuals who have inspired your life decisions?
A: My mom was an artist; she did oil paintings, charcoals and embroidery. Her art is on my walls. She was beautiful and reminded me not to go out without lipstick.
My dad could turn anything into funny. He told jokes and he sang and entertained. My legs would be killing me from eight-hour rehearsals, and he would say, “You did it, you made it, so be proud and dance.”
Toward the end he had nuclear palsy, which caused him to drop without warning. One day while he was in the shower, we heard a loud noise as he grabbed the tub enclosure. We went to help and he said, “It looks like curtains for me.”
Q: If your life story were to be made into a movie, who would play you?
A: I can’t think of anyone more fitting than the Looney Tunes character the Road Runner (people have said that shows how theatrical I am). He’s mischievous, with a silly sense of humor and a cheerful personality. He’s known for his incredible speed, leaving a trail of flame as he runs, and he enjoys surprising, which is good since my whole life has been a surprise.
Q: Who/what makes you laugh?
A: I find humor in all the people I am around and all aspects of life. My dad would do plays on words and talk backwards. I like to go to comedy shows, especially when I’m being picked on. I also get a big kick out of text messages among our family. We used to have a chain under “Old Family” and Brienne didn’t like it so he changed it to “New Family.” We have a lot of fun with them.
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