Gratitude Journal – Day 140 – November 18, 2014

I went back….
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It’s Monday night, and I was late getting there for the Open Mic. But the lights were out and you weren’t there myDarlin’.  And so I went into the thrift store as I did so many Mondays gone by, walking mindlessly up and down the aisles searching for that elusive treasure. As I slid the hangers down the rack, the Aloha shirt that hung there brought tidal waves of memories flooding back. I look at the label, it’s your size Darlin’ and the design of the Woodys cars on the beach was perfect. And for a fleeting moment, I felt a twinge of excitement of a great find, but you weren’t there myDarlin’. And I chose six white ladies t-shirts for the project. 

And I pass the new Waffle House on my way home, and lament for what never was….. 

Squirrel!  My attention is caught by the sign on in the strip mall, so I pull into yet another thrift store. For a reason that I couldn’t put my finger on at the time, I was drawn to the book section. Rows and rows of books of all sorts line the walls. And on the top shelf, several books are grouped apart from the others with a sign ‘Old Books’ taped below. I pick each one of the books up and open them to see if the pages are stitched, making them good candidates for craft projects. One of the books, Fundamentals of Optics, has many line drawings and charts which will make for an interesting project. 

As I open the cover to the next book, The Egg and I, a handwritten letter falls to the floor. I pick it up as I run my finger over the table of contents in the book and think to myself that this could be a compilation of stories such as I am writing here, and I am intrigued about the author’s story. Chapter titles such as ‘And I’ll Be Happy, Mental Block, People and The Lure of the Tropics’  would make excellent subject matter for me to write about, even 70 years after they were originally written. 

And then, I open the letter, and know that it is yet another gift from myDarlin’ Robert Kenui Pope. It is written in cursive in a style very much like that of my Mother’s time. Ironically, while driving to the store this evening, the topic of cursive handwriting not being required in public school systems brought up the notion that the formal signature may indeed be changing. A sign of the times. I begin to read the letter, and think back to the movie ‘God’s Not Dead’ that myDarlin’ and I saw recently. 

And it read….. “two Sundays ago, we argued with our dear friend Otis that ‘God is not dead’ – May I ask you about your Faith? Is it a living tangible element? Or is it dead? Is Faith merely a word that we glibly say? Or is it the sustaining power it should be? What is Faith? It is many things – it is made up of obedience, trust, commitment, courage, spiritual growth, reliance on God as well as trust in him. Faith certainly brings us to God.”

And while I cannot be sure, I imagine the author of the letter to be a lady of years gone by, and think that she would be pleased to know her words of faith are shared with many. I also wonder about the author of the book, The Egg and I, Betty Macdonald, and find quite the fascinating history about her; an American author who specialized in humorous autobiographical tales. 

Today, as I tie the white t-shirts so carefully twisted in a spiral with rubber bands in preparation for the dye bath, I am filled with gratitude. Gratitude for time spent with myDarlin’ tonight on Memory Lane and the gift of Faith that certainly brings us to God. 

#KeepLookingUp #FaithistheKey