Heartfelt Graffiti

All of us have read at least one book that we love? If the topic is really interesting, or there are many points to ponder, we may decide to read it more than once. And if the story is that compelling, we dog ear certain pages for future reference or add colored markers to draw attention to particular paragraphs. I know others that write directly on book pages, often underlining text that their marginal notes refer to.

When we fold, highlight, write or underline parts of a book, this indicates we have invested a specific amount of our time, in that particular book. Our heartfelt graffiti displays to all who view our creatively designed pages – we appreciate and are working towards, absorbing all the wisdom the pages have to offer.

Growing up, I was taught the Bible is holy and we should not deface God’s word. So the only writing I ever put in my Revised Standard Version Bible, was my name. Any notes I took while reading the scripture in Sunday school are long gone. Today, this Bible has no wear on the outside, and the inside pages have a musty odor from years of being stored away.

With all my heart I still believe The Word is holy and should not be defaced. But there is a huge difference between purposefully damaging a Bible, and weathering it from the everyday emersion of physically trying to read, comprehend and get inside its pages to intimately study God’s word. The Bible of my youth, is not how God wants our Bibles to look.

Lacking Attention

I have grown to believe folds on the pages, highlights, writing in the margins and underlining text shows immense dedication. Add to that – tape on the binding, the smell of smoke from a campfire, stains of dripped coffee and smudges of peanut butter. They too communicate their own story, other than the one printed on the page.

Here are pages from my daughter Joy’s Bible.