There's a story here.....
There's a story behind the pages you see above. I'm not sure what it is yet, but I look forward to reading it as the year progresses. I may not be "reading" it in the literal sense. This journal I just completed will be journeying with my son back to Egypt, his new home following his recently completed study abroad semester there. I will most likely depend on my son's updates to Facebook, his blog, and other social media applications to keep me connected to him. But I will also imagine him writing in this journal each day in a place so far away.
This was my first attempt at bookbinding by hand and it will certainly not be my last. I loved the process beginning...to end. I like the fact that I touched and shaped each of these pages for my son. Hopefully as he records his journal entries outlining his experiences in his new home and at his new career, it will bring him some comfort by reminding him we're here for him at all times. He's a new college grad with an Anthropology degree and he is setting out to study, educate and serve the world!
These empty pages symbolize so much to all of us. They represent an unwritten story of the future waiting to be told, the story of 2013, and beyond. They will most likely reminisce of the past days of 2012 as well. 2012 has been an amazing year for all of us in so many ways. All of our four children have reached major milestones in their personal lives and their careers ~ ranging from our oldest becoming a small business owner while still juggling the act of the corporate world, to our youngest getting his drivers license. It's also been a year of discovery for me as I started the Hartley Rowe blog and opened my Etsy shop. And, to anchor us all, 2012 has become the last full year my husband is a member of our beloved US Military. We are looking toward his retirement from the Navy this summer and all the possibilities and challenges that come along when a lifelong member of the military (he was a Navy kid as well), tries to navigate his way in a civilian world. 2013 will be an exciting one for our family for sure!
So, here's to the beginning of stories...for my family and for yours ~ let's all keep reading to see how they out.
Thank you for stopping by today and thank you for a wonderful 2012 for the Hartley Rowe blog.
~ Alison
P.S. Keep an eye out for a future post with a tutorial on how I put the journal together. If anyone out there has any tips for bookbinding, I would love to hear them. By the end I was covered in glue and fearful it would all fall apart!! Thank you!
