one made by one of my sons, one of my husband and I at a friends wedding, one from my sister,
one I made from our Beauty & the Beast show, and a few given to me by friends
I have a love of bookmarks!
There, I said it! I love bookmarks!
I sure have quite the eclectic collection of bookmarks, so I thought it would be fun to write about them.
I’m not sure exactly when I got my first bookmark, but I know I received a few as a kid, one in particular from my sunday school teachers (I think I was in 6th grade) They signed the back of it with a lovely message and the front of it reads “Remind me, Lord, that nothing’s going to happen to me today that you & I together can’t handle.”
It’s still one of my favorites, and I’ve kept it all this time. Not just because I like the graphics, but because of who gave it to me and the personalized message on the back of it.
Some of my bookmarks are in books I haven’t picked up in a long time. It’s a pleasant surprise to find a book tucked away on a shelf and open it up and find bookmarks I’d forgotten about. Especially ones from my mom.
Each bookmark reminds me of someone or some event and they hold a special spot in a book that I wanted to remember (My Bible has so many bookmarks in it).
It seems I’ve become a collector of bookmarks through the years. Now I’ve become a bit more purposeful about it.
Four years ago, I was traveling with my then 8th grade son (the middle one) with his 8th grade class to Washington D.C. and New York. We were stopping at so many places, I wanted to have something from each place but didn’t want to spend a fortune. I have no reason to collect matches, and decks of cards is what my husband and I have collected together since we were married (and we weren’t on this trip together), so I wanted to find something else.
Our first stop was at Gettysberg and they had one I liked so I purchased it. Then we went to the next stop in DC and I found another one. At stop number three all there really was was a bookmark and I liked it, so I bought it. Then at the next stop, there were bookmarks being given for free. And on and on. Maybe around stop four or five, I realized I had a thing going and became more purposeful in searching for bookmarks.
I was pretty much able to find bookmarks at every stop. Something small and inexpensive to collect on the trip. It was perfect. When I got home, I had collected so many unique and different ones and they all held meaningful memories – both for the place itself and the memory in purchasing the bookmark. I got pretty excited towards the end of the trip when I would find yet another one so I could complete my set.
Throughout the years I’ve received special bookmarks from friends and family, along with custom photo bookmarks from weddings and events.
There really is quite a variety of types of bookmarks in my collection.
When I began this writing journey, I ended up with quite a few bookmarks from authors I met at different meetings, so I have a group of those too.
When my mom passed away last year and I wanted to have something people could take home with them. I remember another friend having bookmarks at her mother’s funeral, so I decided to make one to give away at my mom’s service. I found a quote in my moms journal and was able to create this special keepsake.
I know I have way too many bookmarks, but it’s fun to switch them out and they are small enough they don’t take up a ton of room. I wonder what bookmark I will at to my collection next?
Do you have a favorite bookmark?
I would love to hear about your favorites! Share in the comments below.