Paddle to the Sea: Saturday, May 11 | 9pm

by Maggie Molloy

When you put a little love into the world, it comes back to you in ways you might never have expected.

This Saturday on Second Inversion: Paddle to the Sea. The 1941 children’s book by Holling C. Holling tells the story of a young Indigenous boy who lives in the Nipigon region of Canada. He carves a wooden figurine in a canoe and launches him on a solo voyage across the Great Lakes and all the way into the Atlantic Ocean.

“Please put me back in the water,” he carves along the side of the boat. “I am Paddle to the Sea.”

Each time a lumberjack pulls the little canoe out of the river, or a fisherman fishes it out of a net, they see this carving and they place the figurine back in the water with care. Rather than keeping Paddle to the Sea for themselves, they send him along the waterways—perhaps with fresh coat of paint or a new rudder. That little boat travels the world; it passes through many different hands before word of its grand adventures finally returns to the boy in adulthood.

Holling C. Holling’s book comes alive through an entire ocean of sounds in Third Coast Percussion’s musical retelling of this beloved work. We’ll hear them perform their own original score, composed to accompany the 1966 film adaptation. Plus, we’ll travel to the opposite coast with music inspired by the shimmer of sunlight glistening across one California lagoon.

To listen, tune in to Classical KING on Saturday, May 11 at 9pm PT.