I wrote this poetic story about a diary that I found at a flea-market, I really considered it a treasure...I am addicted to antique and unusual books...and the stories that they hold.

A Flea-Market Find

I purchased the most unique treasure just the other day.
This rare but special gift I did not buy in the usual place.
And a high dollar I did not pay.
I did not buy it at Hallmark…or an expensive gift shop…
a treasure trove instead… in a small and dusty space.
An ideal place for those who seek to find treasures that are unique, I found it at a local flea-market…for one dollar I might add…In a venders booth called…
The Pack Rat’s Boutique.

This small treasure that I did find…
It contained wonderful gold edged papers…
That soft brown leather did bind.
It was small…very small indeed,
small enough to fit in a dainty little pocket…
a feminine purse or a secret place for safety to keep.

The names that were written inside this tiny little book…
they hold a mystery that allows the reader to travel…
not to fairytales lands, but to existing lands…lands far, far, away.
The names you ask, well they were simply written…
Doug & Vickie…that was all,
but the words that were quickly scribbled…much did they say.

This unique little brown book was a gift from her mom,
the inscription it did read, and the date on the back cover…well it simply read April of the year 1962.
To record the travels that we gave as a gift to you…

The journey began in the month of May.
The young couple boarded a plane leaving New York,
this rainy spring day.
The travels they appeared exciting…
I couldn’t wait to turn the next gold leafed page.
Walking in Rome among the old city…the ruins I cannot describe!
To the train in Germany they did ride.
Unbelievable where this young couple had journeyed…
I was the captivated audience…
the couple the actors…the diary center stage.

The next stop along this incredible journey,
I could only envision the beauty their eyes beheld…As I devoured the handwritten words…the young couple’s stop was in Holland.
Simply to have a cup of coffee at a sidewalk café…Riding a ferry she spoke of eating something tantalizing indeed, A delicious nutmeg croquette.

Wow! I could only imagine…the joy and the sights,
the kind of summer most only dream of.
Strolling along the sandy coastline…And sipping flavored coffee in a lighthouse built long ago…
touring Switzerland…expensive it was…a glass of wine 2.50…what a price!
Shopping in elegant France boutiques…Styles quite different, risky and yet unique!
Breakfast in Venice…hard rolls, cheese, and something unknown…Snow capped mountains what a wondrous view indeed…As were the hot rum balls…they employed to feed.

Castles were toured, King Ludwig’s to be exact…
the grounds were spectacular…
the story even more grand.
This King, he a bit bizarre…Vickie recorded…loving swans with statues from years ago still standing intact. This King he never married, and mysteriously died.
The last stop on this fairytale journey…To yet another castle, Rheinsfel’s Castle they would visit…grounds that were peaceful, warm and sunny.

The journey it ended on July 4^th 1962…Who was this couple, it yet remains a mystery.
But for now the little brown diary occupies my bookcase…Written by hand…describing the journeys to many far away lands.
It is intriguing in itself…yet serves as a reminder…A reminder you may ask? A reminder for me… journeys can be found between the pages of a book…
but even more important…there is no place like home!

Written By: Joyce Bowling
Copyright October 2006
All rights reserved