love letters

This collection of letters my grandfather (Pap) sent home to his mother during World War II is among my most prized possessions.  I can only imagine how much importance this little ribboned-bundle held for a mother whose son was in battle on the other side of the world.

My grandmother (Mamaw) most certainly had a similar much-loved bundle---but in a gesture that both breaks my heart and deepens my respect for my grandparents' affection for one another, she burned hers following his return home.  What they shared was theirs alone---for no one else.

Ironically enough, as I write this post, this song started playing on Pandora.