Bookmarks

I was excited to finally get to make one of the journals I kept seeing around: the ones made out of the covers of old books. I sat looking at the old novels in front of me: some with rough worn covers and a simple title and some old colorful childrens books. I picked up an old rough green book with the dark red words, "The Wright Brothers" printed on it. I began flipping through its pages when it stopped, the pages parted by a slim white piece of paper. I pulled the paper out of the book and read it.

In tight cursive:

Jeanne-
Sorry I can't buy any
film until about May 5th.
We just barely have enough
for our food.
From your Mother who is
too stupid to have a better
income.

In larger child's scrawl on the other side:

Dear Mommy:
HERE's Payment
FOR Film: TO
My SMart,
Beuatiful
Mommy (heart)me

My heart skipped a beat and I stopped and stared at the note for a long time. In the end I decided on a children's book and slipped the note inside. The girl who chose the "Wright Brothers" book to make her journal out of gave me the spine as a book mark.

There's such a story here. A story of a cynical mother who wishes she could do better for her children and a young child, I imagine a young a girl, who thinks the world of her mommy and wants to do what she can for her. It's a story of love, pain, forgiveness, and life. I want to honor their story through remembrance and also through my actions as I live by Jeanne's example of forgiveness, encouragment and giving, and sympathize with others for the sake of her mother. I will make their bookmark my own and hopefully one day when my books are sold and it is left in their pages, another soul will come along and find it, and learn those same lessons.

9/13/11