During Read Across America week, guest speaker and local author Greg Asimakoupoulos donned his Cat in the Hat persona and captivated Mrs. Luce’s 2nd graders with a reading of Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham. He wove a meaningful lesson into the whimsical tale, urging our students not to prejudge—whether it’s unfamiliar food (like green eggs and green ham!) or people—emphasizing that prejudice contradicts Jesus’ teachings of love and acceptance. Mr. Asimakoupoulos then bridged Seuss’s playful rhymes to the rich poetry found in the Bible, spotlighting the Psalms as a treasure trove of word pictures. He shared Psalm 45:1—“My heart is filled with a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful poet”—to illustrate how praising God can turn each of us into a poet.
Delving deeper, Mr. Asimakoupoulos highlighted Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want,” explaining how David, a shepherd himself, painted God’s care through vivid imagery of green pastures and still waters. He imagined David under a vast, starlit sky, feeling small yet known by God, who whispered, “I carry you when you’re weak.” This may be what inspired David to pen his famous poem, a reminder of God’s intimate care amidst a grand universe.
Mr. Asimakoupoulos encouraged the students to explore the Psalms, where poetry waits to be discovered. Closing with a prayer, he thanked God for revealing truth through artful words and asked for blessings on the class, hoping they’d grow into world-changing followers of Jesus—sparked by the poetic legacy of Seuss and scripture.
To hear more of Greg Asimakoupoulos wise words, visit his Youtube channel, “My Rhymes and Reasons.”
