The Magical Mary Poppins

For two years after college, I was a part-time nanny to some really wonderful kids.  I became a wee bit obsessed with Mary Poppins.  I dressed up as Mary for Halloween (thanks mom!), and I finally read the original book by P.L. Travers.  You might already know this, but the character Mary Poppins written by Travers is significantly more strict and sniffy (and vain - who would have guessed?) than the beloved Julie Andrews movie-version.  Travers actually held out the movie rights from Disney for seventeen years, and even then, according to author Melanie Wentz, "she didn't care for the results, saying she was "disturbed at seeing it so externalized, so oversimplified, so generalized."" (p. 136).

Either way, Mary Poppins makes magical things happen, and she treats them like the rest of us treat the act of brushing our teeth.  I must say that I feel surrounded by magic these days - an inexplicable magic of things beloved.

More on Ms. Poppins in a minute.  For now, we go to St. Paul's Cathedral.

See Queen Ann in the corner?  She has a pigeon on her shoulder.

St. Paul's Cathedral is... amazing, incredible, impressive, staggering, and in every sense of the word, awe-some.  We weren't allowed to take pictures inside, so you'll have to take my word or make a point to go yourself.  Anyway, we made the climb up some 530 stairs to the top of the dome and were rewarded by some great aerial views.

I can't quite believe these pictures - the people and cars look like miniatures to me.  I know there's a fancy camera trick to make that more pronounced, but I don't have a fancy camera.

St. Paul's Cathedral (the central place of worship for the Anglican church) is a thing of stone, wood, and glass that can move you to tears.  Clearly, it is more than the sum of its parts.  There's something else... something intangible that pervades every inch.  And it's not just churches - I felt the same thing when I entered the Old Library at Trinity College (proof that I'm in the right profession).  These places aren't just famous because everyone agrees they're famous.  I think that this is partially from the great love the British people have for St. Paul's.  Earlier in the day at the Museum of London, a bit of oral history related a man's memory of the cathedral during World War II: during the worst of the London bombings, the dome of St. Paul's stood, and it gave the people hope.  The cathedral is unique in so many ways, and the British are proud that it is theirs.  

When I was a child, I was never crazy about the song "Feed the Birds" from Mary Poppins.  As an adult, however, the song has nestled down deep in my heart.  I sang it to my little charges (remember, I was a nanny).  It encapsulates the nurture and comfort that a mother feels for her children.  There's a lot of love in the song: the Sherman brothers (composers) recount playing it for Walt Disney almost every Friday afternoon in his office.  And, of course, the Bird Woman loves her birds like no one else does.  I just love the way the music swells and flows with violins, bell, and a choir, yet maintains a simple melody.

I can see now that the song fits so well with the cathedral.  The Brits love St. Paul's, and St. Paul's is there to offer comfort and hope.  Mary Poppins is loved because she cares for Jane and Michael Banks so completely.  She's the nanny everyone wishes they had.  Mary might have magic to talk to animals and pop in and out of sidewalk pictures, but that's not why we love her.  St. Paul's might be an amazing architectural feat, but that's not the only reason people come from all over the world to see it.

I don't know how I missed it, but I did.  What I've felt isn't magic at all - it's love.

Sources: Wentz, Melanie. (2002). Once Upon a Time in Great Britain. St. Martin's Press: New York.
Sherman, Richard M. and Robert B. (1964). "Interview with the Sherman Brothers." Mary Poppins Original Movie Soundtrack. Disney.