Kathryn Lasky’s 1996 historical novel, The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple: A Journey to the New World, tells the story of a young English girl’s adventure from Europe to North America. The diary begins in October of 1620, with twelve-year-old Remember Patience Whipple aboard the ship, the Mayflower. Remember’s family, as well as others in their group, define themselves by their religion. They consider themselves Saints of the Holy Discipline, or Saints. Together, the group leaves England and moves first to Holland, and then to North America (the “New World,” according to Remember). In her diary entries, Remember writes about her mother (Mam), her father, and her sister, Blessing. She writes about her friends Humility (Hummy) Sawyer and Will Butten. She relates what happens on the ship, and what the pilgrims do when they first come to land at Cape Cod, and when they move to nearby Plimoth. Throughout the diary, Remember references God. Remember’s diary entries reveal how the pilgrims’ understanding of God affects every aspect of their lives.

Thoughts

While at sea, and on land, Remember frequently thinks of God’s role in her life. At one point during their sea voyage, a rogue wave causes the main beam of their ship to crack. The men on the ship come together to fix the beam. Finally, Remember writes in her diary, “It has worked…The main beam is raised and repaired! We are blessed” (p. 10). Remember attributes the favorable outcome on the ship to God. She considers the fixed beam a blessing, or help from God. When they arrive in the New World, the pilgrims continue to encounter dangers. One day in Plimoth Harbor, two young men go out to gather materials for the settlement, and get lost. Remember worries: “The two men still are lost. I think it will be a miracle if they live” (p. 88). Remember thinks that men’s survival would be a miracle, or the inexplicable work of God. She believes that the men need an intervention from God in order to make their way back to the settlement safely. Remember thinks that she sees God intervene when she looks at her sister, Blessing. Remember believes, “[Blessing] thinks this plastering is playing. She loves doing it. The Lord does work in mysterious and beautiful ways and I think one of them is through Blessing - that she can think that building this house is a game and do it well is wondrous. It keeps her busy and gives Mam a rest” (p. 92). When Remember watches her young sister help the family build their new house, Remember thinks that the Lord (God) must be at work. Remember marvels at the fact that Blessing can actually be useful, have fun, and not worry her caregivers all at the same time. Remember’s diary entries illustrate how God stays in her thoughts.

Words

The people in Remember’s life often talk about God. When young Will Butten passes away aboard the Mayflower, Hummy and Remember mourn him. Hummy says to Remember: “‘Mem, he now be in heaven and his eyes doth reflect the glory of the Lord, and he sits with his mother once again’…And these words of Hummy did help us both and we turned to look once more on this New World at the far edge of this vast and terrible sea” (p. 39). When Hummy and Remember lose their friend Will, they both need comfort. Hummy tries to cheer Remember, and assures her that Will is now in heaven, the place where good people go after they die. Hummy says that Will is with his mother, and with God in heaven. Hummy’s words remind the girls of their religious beliefs and encourage them both to be brave. When the pilgrims first arrive in the New World, a group of men leave the Mayflower to explore the land. When the group goes ashore, they find stores of corn buried in the ground. Remember explains how the men react: “Father and all the men say that this finding of corn is a sign of the special providence of God; thus showing his great mercy upon us poor souls and thus providing us with seed corn to plant next year” (p. 59). Remember’s father and the other men tell the pilgrims to understand the corn as providence, or God’s protection. The corn provides the pilgrims with food for the present, and the seeds provide the pilgrims with hope for the future. The men talk about the corn as a gift from God, not the work of the native people there. One day, another pilgrim discovers a new body of water, and Hummy and Remember wish they could make an exciting discovery. Remember confesses: “Hummy and I are consumed with envy, but Mam says envy be the worst of all sins. So I am trying hard to forget about it. But it is difficult, when people are already referring to it as the Billington Sea” (p. 86). Remember’s mother tells the girls they should try to avoid the feeling of jealousy. Of all the sins, or the immoral actions against God, Remember’s mother says that jealously is worst of all. Remember’s friend, father, and mother, all refer to their religious beliefs when they speak to one another.

Actions

Remember explains: “The reason for our journey is our religion. You see, we are not the Pope’s people nor the King’s really, but God’s people. We are Saints of the Holy Discipline. ‘Saints’ for short. That is what all of us English who went to Holland are called” (p. 3). Remember and her family leave Europe and sail to a new land across the Atlantic ocean because of their religion. They belong to a group of people that does not identify with the Pope, the leader of the Catholic church. The group also wants no connection with the English King James and the Church of England. When the Mayflower arrives at Cape Cod Bay, and Remember is able to go onto land, she recalls, “We came ashore early under an armed guard organized by Captain Standish and the very first thing we did was fall to our knees on the sand to give thanks to our Lord” (p. 50). The arrival on land is special for the pilgrims because their arrival marks the end of their long and dangerous journey at sea, and because the land is their new home. To celebrate the very special moment on land, the pilgrims lower themselves to their knees and thank God for their successful arrival. The show of thanks to God is an important type of prayer for the pilgrims, who want to consistently show their humility and gratitude to God. After the Mayflower arrives at Plimouth Harbor, Remember finally writes: “It is one minute after midnight. The Sabbath is over, so now I can write. I did pray for Patience and it did not come! In fact, I am more impatient than ever. You see, nobody could, of course, go ashore on Sabbath” (p. 73). Remember’s diary entry indicates several ways in which religion affects the behavior of the Saints. First, Remember reveals that she cannot write in her diary on the Sabbath, the holy day of rest. One minute after midnight, as soon as a new day arrives, she can resume the occupation of writing. Remember also describes how she prays, or talks to God. She prays to God to ask for patience. Remember does not write on the Sabbath, and no one can leave the ship and go to land on that day either.

The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple illustrates the dominant role that God plays in the lives of Remember Patience Whipple and her fellow Saints. In her diary entries, Remember reveals how often she thinks of God. She credits God for many of the good things that sees happen in her life, the successful (life-saving) repairment of the Mayflower, the survival of two lost men, and happy moments with her younger sister. God is also prevalent in the conversations that Remember has with her family and friends. The people around Remember refer to God to comfort each other, to validate themselves, and to remind each other of good behavior. Perhaps most significantly, the Saints’ belief in God affects their actions. They choose to leave their home country and begin new lives in an unknown land, all in the name of their religion. Together, they pray to God and thank him, and they resist any action at all each week on the Sabbath day. The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple shows how people’s understanding of God can affect every aspect of their life.

References

Lasky, Kathryn. (1996). The diary of Remember Patience Whipple: A journey to the new world. Scholastic Inc.

Religious Vocabulary in Remember Patience Whipple’s Diary
Blessed Lucky or fortunate thanks to God
Miracle A seemingly impossible, happy event that must be thanks to God
Lord Another name for God or Christ
Heaven God’s home in the sky
Providence God’s protection
Sin An offense against God
Pope The leader of the Roman Catholic Church
Prayer Words for God, often to thank him
Sabbath The holy day of the week, the rest day