Michelangelo and Long Plane Rides

"He sat before the mirror of the second-floor bedroom sketching his lean cheeks with their high bone ridges, the flat broad forehead, and ears too far back on the head, the dark hair curling forward in thatches, the amber-colored eyes wide-set but heavy-lidded."...so begins one of the classic biographical novels of our time, The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone.. First published in 1961, this Special Edition has been released in honor of the 500th anniversary of Michelangelo's, David.

Dealing with used books, I find all sorts of little mementos. Used as bookmarks, they each tell their own little story about the books former owner. In this massive tome (776 pages), I found the stub of a boarding pass. There's nothing like a good book to take the edge off a long plane ride so I see lots of them. It's a little window into the life of the former owner. Was it being read by a man or woman? Where were they coming from or going to? Was there a significance to their choosing that book at that specific time?

I was delighted to see that this particular boarding pass was from a flight originating in Rome, headed to Dulles. Of course! I pictured a woman who visited Rome with her husband (she was traveling as 'Mrs.') and was swept away by the magnificent art and architecture of that ancient city. As she was leaving, she wanted to have one more memento to help keep the spirit of her adventure alive, even if only for a few hours on the flight home. The real world sparked her interest, and a book filled in the missing pieces.

Because that's what books do. They take us into another world, the world the author builds for us. It's a world we can always visit, that's always there for us to sink into for as long or as little as we like.

(You can find this book at Rocky's Mountain Books, The Agony and the Ecstasy, by Irving Stone and  purchase by clicking on the 'Add To Cart' button on the left side of the page)