A Trip Down Memory Lane

I spent all day going through closets and boxes that we had hardly touched since moving into our house several years ago. I took pleasure in getting rid of some things, others I repacked and labeled for later use hopefully some wintry day when things are going at a slower pace. Still other things took me down memory lane. One item I found was my old autograph book.

Most Amish teenage girls have an autograph book that they get their friends to write their autograph. I was fifteen when Mom and Dad gave me this one for Christmas. I was very pleased and looked forward to my 16th birthday when I would get to join the youth group and have my friends sign it.

I opened the book and started reading the entries, some of them made me smile, others gave me mixed emotions but I treasured each and everyone. As I read them they took me back to the day they had been signed and what a wealth of memories they opened.

My Mom signed this on Christmas day after I asked her to be the first one to sign it. I am so glad I did even though it was not the normal thing to do, to get your mother to sign your book.

When I read this one I had to laugh. It was the very last one to be written into my book. It took me back to the day before our wedding, my cousins Emma, and Esther and their brother's girlfriend and I were in my room. We were reading the replies our wedding guests had sent and there was one in particular that struck our funny bone. One of my husbands uncles had written that they won't be able to attend but wish us a very "fruitful" marriage.

They of-course envisioned multiple sets of twins in my future.They had fun scribbling the verse in and handing it to me, but ironically I am getting the last laugh because they each have a set of twins!

This one takes me back to one of our trips to Canada to see Grandma Swarey and all the aunts, uncles, and cousins. We cousins were all sitting at one of the picnic tables visiting and having a grand old time when cousin Nathan made his entry. Though it held no truth at the moment I'm wondering if he had a prophetic streak that evening.



John found my autograph and made his entry after one of the first evenings my future husband came for a visit. David made his a few years later when it was officially announced that I would become the bride of a farmer!



Grandpa Mast signed his name to an entry that Grandma wrote. His hands were too shaky to write more than a few words at a time. But he could still tell stories, I enjoyed spending evenings with him several times a week until I got married. I will treasure this always.

There were many others from friends and cousins, aunts and uncles. I read them all and then tucked it into a box to be enjoyed again some other day.