Forgotten Words
hat caught my eye was the sign "Garage Sale," lettered in
Gothic style and placed neatly in the middle of a manicured lawn on
Maple Ave. Most people advertise garage sales with a cardboard sign, or
an arrow pointing to where the event is taking place. When I realized
which house it was on Maple I became more excited. The old house stood
tall and strong, its elegance and style once accorded to the new wealthy
who had flocked to Long Island at the turn of the century. It was quite
an attraction in Smithtown. The Victorian era had ended but the builders
had tried to give the house the feel and texture of a Victorian home.
The present owner a retired high school principal had just put it up for
sale.
When I first go into a garage sale I do a quick scan and than move in for a closer look. Being a confirmed pack rat and book collector I can sense when there is something worthwhile for sale. This time I headed straight to a small carved wooden bookshelf filled with dusty old books. There were twenty in all, published between 1900 and 1930 and I bought them and the book shelf for the unbelievable sum of $10.00.
A German Bible in bad condition, a mystery book soiled and warped and a book, "How to Write Gregg Shorthand," I donated to the Smithtown library. That evening, in my much smaller and not quite as interesting house, I looked through the ones I'd kept. Among them a Betty Crocker cook book, an autographed book from the Audubon Society about birds common to the Northeast, and a few school library books.
I bought other things at that Garage Sale, a silver chafing dish with feet shaped like claws, and some signed prints, but my real discoveries were the old books. Occasionally if I'm lucky I'll find notes and inscriptions scrawled in them that give clues to the book's previous owner. Sometimes when I look at the handwriting in an old book, I can almost sense what the owner might have been like. A handwriting that is bold and sloppy, shows an outgoing impulsive person, while one that is neat and small, suggests a tidy precise person. I've found valuable manuscripts and stories written before the author was famous in many a dusty cellar and at Garage Sales. So when I dropped the school library books, one entitled "A Modern Romance" fell open to a page that had handwriting all around the border.
Page 22, �My dearest,
I missed you today at lunch, my father said we cannot see each
other anymore, but I will not let him stop me." The handwriting neat and
precise with well-rounded letters, had the "I's" dotted with a heart.
Turning more pages I realized each page had a message written on it.
Page 50, �Ann,
I saw you at the store yesterday, with your Mom. Your back
was to me at the register and though I wanted to say hello, I wasn't
sure what kind of welcome I'd get. I don't want you to have trouble
with your family because of our friendship. I'll meet you at the bluff
near the beach after school. You take the book today and bring it to
the library tomorrow. I love you.
Brian�
His handwriting was large and bold, impulsive and free. I was sure I had not found a hidden romance between F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda but still this book was intriguing.
The whole book had messages in it, they'd passed this book back and forth to each other in the library, no wonder they couldn't return it. I felt like I was reading a diary. Who were they? These star crossed lovers from the 1920's. Did they ever marry? What was so bad about Brian? The book seemed more like Romeo and Juliet than "A Modern Romance."
Page 101 "Brian,
I found a place for us to meet, the Thompson cottage by the
lake. The cottage has been vacant since last April when Mr. Thompson's
son moved to California. After school I have to go to the store so
I'll meet you there at 3:15. I love you."
Ann
I had to turn the book upside down at times to read the whole message, Brian's handwriting was so big he could only fit a few words in the borders. Sometimes he just wrote Cottage and the time 4:00. They must have met regularly in the old Thompson cottage that burned down a few years ago. His notes were brief but they all ended the same, I love you.
I'd lost interest in the actual story and just kept reading the
notes. It was a big book and their whole relationship was there.
Page 114, "I asked Dad if he would let you come visit, just to get to
know you, he said 'the apple doesn't fall far from the tree'. Why do
parents think they know everything, your father was in trouble, not you.
Don't worry Brian there isn't anything they can say or do that will stop
me from loving you."
Ann
Page 202, "Ann,
I'm going to have to quit school. My mother can't afford much
with my dad in prison and I have to work. Meeting after school is out
too, I'll be working full time."
There were only about twenty pages left and from the tone in the notes it seemed like the end of the romance was near.
"Brian, Brian, Brian,
I say your name over and over in my dreams. I haven't seen you
in over two weeks and I cannot bear it, I do not want to live without
you. You'll never see this or any of the other things I write. I miss
you so much."
There was a letter in Brian's big handwriting. It was pressed between page 210 and 211 and had a lipstick print on the back with little hearts that said Ann loves Brian and the date Sept 1932.
"Dear Ann,
The summer went by quickly and you are just about ready to start
your senior year. I've been working at the Navy Yard in Bristol and
learning to repair the big engines they use on the ships. I like this
kind of work and the boss says I'm doing pretty well. I miss you and
hope that someday your father will know that I'm a good person and a
hard worker. Ann, this is going to be a great year for you and I don't
want to spoil your graduation and proms and parties. If your father
still doesn't let us see each other I want you to do all the things you
want to in high school. Ann forget me for now, maybe some day we'll be
together, till then, I'll always love you."
Brian
Poor kid, I thought, God what a world. I wonder if we've really changed that much. There were no more notes in the book. When I pulled apart some stuck pages I found a yellowed newspaper clipping, dated November 1933.
An unfortunate accident at the Navy Yard in Bristol took the life of a local boy, Brian Cummings, when an engine he'd been working on exploded. The article said he left a mother and three sisters. It never mentioned Ann. His teachers at Smithtown High School spoke of his kindness and caring for his family.
I could not believe it. From a Garage sale I saw two people's lives unfold with hope and happiness and then end in sorrow.
I wondered what happened to Ann. Did she marry, did she ever forget Brian?
In the back of the book was the little pocket envelope that held the sign out library card. Stamped on the outside of the envelope were words �Property of The Smithtown School District, if this book is found please return it to the main office�. On the sign out card in the same neat precise handwriting that looked familiar to me, was the name Ann Maguire.
That took my breath away, Ann Maguire, was my mother's maiden name. Yes she did marry and yes she did have a family, two girls, one of which I am and a boy named Brian. I remembered then, how occasionally Mom would look off into space sadly and I'd ask her what she was thinking about.
She'd kiss me and hold me tight . Sometimes I'd see a tear and she'd say �my darling child I'm thinking of an old friend, a dear old friend, who died many years ago, long before you were born.�
I held the book close and I started to cry, I knew I didn't have to wonder or sense what the owner was like who wrote in this old book.
