b is for books

I knew from the very beginning that when it came to B in this “alphabet of inspiration,” that B would have to stand for books. The whole idea for this series basically started there anyway. One evening, as I was reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, I stumbled upon an amazing line that made my heart leap just a bit....“They bought Harry’s school books in a shop called Flourish and Blotts where shelves were stacked to the ceiling with books as large as paving stones bound in leather; books the size of postage stamps in covers of silk; books full of peculiar symbols and a few books with nothing in them at all.” Now, that was a book store I wanted to explore.

When it comes to sources of inspiration, books not only top the list, but they verge on being an obsession. We gathered in Pastor Scott’s office for our prayer time after choir tonight, and I couldn’t help but get a bit distracted by the rows upon rows of books that seemed to almost encircle the room. I wanted to just linger there....glancing over the titles and skimming the pages, perhaps getting lost in the endless information that was right at my fingertips.

I, myself, have enough books to make up my own little motley library of sorts. Each serves its own special purpose, and even the most obscure paperback has just enough usefulness (or so I’ve convinced myself) to make it impossible to throw away. Classic novels from my many college English classes, filled with underlining and dog eared pages, line the bookcase in the basement. 25-cent tag sale hard covers wait patiently to be transformed into altered art creations. Reference books, filled with gorgeous photographs or detailed drawings, remain in the cabinets for that day when the perfect art project will require their useful aid. Kids’ books remind me of a childhood full of bedtime stories and inspire me to one day see my own name on a cover, right next to the words “Illustrated by...” I suppose that my collection of books will only continue to grow. And, despite the concern I have over where to keep all of these treasures, this thought remains a fabulously exciting one.

But, B is also for boldness. B is for belief. B is for the Bible. And, B is for beginnings, like the one that started with my recent attempt at altering books. As you can see from the photo, a beginning is all that it is at this point. Still, I’ve recently come to realize that a beginning in and of itself (even if there isn’t much to show for it) is better than no beginning at all.