Life of Lydia

Hello dear readers. I have recently finished reading Persuasion by Jane Austen. Just like S&S I read it aloud to my mother at bedtime. Due to the late hour at which this reading took place, it was not uncommon for my mother to fall asleep and miss out on rather large portions of the book. When this happened, I narrated the parts she had missed to get her up to speed.

Throughout the entire time that we were reading Persuasion my mother kept hinting at the fact that there was a very important letter at the end of the book. As we were nearing the end, she flipped ahead and informed me how many chapters were left till the letter. One evening I read a few chapters and my mother was fast asleep. Normally I would have taken this as a hint to end our reading session, but the next chapter contained the letter! After all the talk about how great the letter was, I was quite eager to read it. I entreated my mother to let me continue reading to her, but she (who has the special gift of speaking while slumbering,) said that she had already been asleep for the last chapter so I couldn’t read another one. She muttered something about me finishing the book on my own, and I muttered an affirmative reply.

I eagerly quit my mother’s bedroom, Persuasion in hand. I settled into my bed, and hunching over in an awkward position which I would later regret, I read the final chapters of Persuasion. I quickly came to understand what all the hubub with the letter is about. Oh! It was a night to remember! I don’t believe I had ever before in my life stayed up late to finish a book, and I must say it is a delightful experience.

If you wish to know the type of day I had after my late night reading session, simply imagine a sixteen year old girl with an extremely stiff neck, walking through the halls of Ridgecrest Babtist Church, thinking about pierced souls, agony, and hope.