Despite good intentions, I rarely pick up a book. I read in the blog world, where I lose all sense of time, happily interacting with my friends around the world. When John was away recently, I was determined to read the first of three books friend Nancy sent me — Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. It was written by Fannie Flagg and published in 1987. The setting of the novel is near Birmingham, Alabama, which is only a few hours away from my hometown. Reading that book was like visiting with friends of friends. I didn’t meet anyone I knew, but many of the characters reminded me of people in my past.

Marking my place was a bookmark neighbor Connie made for me. What a delight it was to use it! I saw it often on my bedside table, but I loved putting it to work and handling it often. Maybe the bookmark will inspire me to keep reading, even if only for a few minutes each day.