an ode to things worn and loved

My well-worn, well-loved bible:

Soft, brown leather cover imprinted with a flower,

‘Nothing can separate us’ on the back cover,

Its familiar weight falls open on my lap every morning

I see coffee stains - the result of my dogs insisting on being next to me as I read and sip;

It’s my favorite time of the day.

A teal mark where it fell off the chair and hit the coffee table,

The page in exodus (or is it Deuteronomy?) completely stained by coffee;

A perfectly imperfect collage of components of my quiet time.

I smell new leather, old pages, ink.

I feel the ridges where words and flowers are imprinted on the cover.

Random pages dog-eared and creased from travel to church, camps, vacations, and more.

Pearls of wisdom from authors, commentators, preachers scrawled in the margins.

This little square of the universe that I make completely my own,

It anchors my heart, anchors my mind,

It’s a reflection of the life I’ve lived and a glimpse of hope for everything to come.

It’s not shiny, not new;

It’s dear and loved and wholly mine.

<3 Caroline