A World of Words
Mr. Jeremiah Silent had always prided himself in his library. Sure he was considered the "Boo Radley" of the street and honestly, he couldn't blame his neighbors. Laura had passed over two years ago, which didn't exactly make him a more social person. So he retreated deeper into his books, into the words, the characters, the worlds. Laura had always called him a bookworm, and then adjusted thick- framed glasses.
She was just about the only one who would put up with his saying that "book space is more important than living space." His thick novels and novellas would be crammed next to her vials of perfume and her sheets of math problems. If it was something that his Laura loved, it was a good number-crunching problem. That's probably why she had taught high school calculus for twenty years before the breast cancer took her.
Jeremiah shifted his weight as sank down in his large arm chair. It was an Harry Potter day with The Goblet of the Fire propped up on his lap and a steaming hot cup of pumpkin spice tea. The harsh, grey light of a rainy morning filtered through the large bay window. Jeremiah had found himself glancing at the empty rocking chair across from him and the glaringly empty tea cup in the kitchen. He sighed deeply before turning back to his book.
It was exactly half past nine when the familiar swing of his gate opening and closing announced the arrival of the paper. Jeremiah slid the book under his arm and opened the door.
"Hey Mr. Silent!" Jeremiah looked up and saw Max Lightwood propping his bike on the lamppost. Jeremiah smiled, Max was one of the few who did not think he was crazy or insane.
"Hello Max." He leaned over his fence. Max eyed the thin book under his arm.
"What are you reading?" Jeremiah laughed at his look of distaste.
"Harry Potter, I'm guessing that you're not much of a reader."
"It's just so boring!" Max sighed, "I just end up falling asleep in class." Jeremiah bit his lip as he glanced down at his worn book.
"Why don't you give this one a try, if you like it- you can keep it." Max's eyes widened.
"Really? Wow, thanks Mr. Silent!" Jeremiah smiled as Max peeled out and rode away. He returned to the silence of his house, his hands were feeling quite empty. But he smiled any way, books were meant to be read, not preserved. Besides, he had accumulated a new reading source as Max slipped his drafts of his Harry Potter fanfiction through his mail slot.
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He had found inspiration in that one act. It was a rather odd thing really. He had found this obscure little blog written by a sixteen year old, detailing every act of kindness she had done.
The greatest thing about kindness is that it extends to everyone, no matter who they are. Be kind to a random stranger and make their day.
He couldn't bring himself to speak personally to anyone. He always averted his eyes and looked down- it was just how he was used to interacting. But he started to give the only thing he felt was good in his life- his library. Old books would be picked out and stacked on his steps with a sign and an empty wicker basket:
Please take one.
Price: a tea bag, a coin, a strip of fabric, advice or a story
He had gotten a collection of pennies, advice on how to clean up gutters and a story about a missing cat. Each one had represented something about the person who had taken those worn books, accepted and integrated its words and meaning into their lives, treasured them as he had treasured them with Laura.
That was the point of books, for their ideas, their stories to diffuse through people, for their covers and spines to be pressed and hugged by different arms and hands. It was not to stop on the dusty shelf of an old man's library, not to be hoarded shrewdly.
It was that one day where he received two tea bags- each one of them was shoved with a foreign brew that smelled quite citrusy. They were both tied with a blue string, stapled to the paper. He was walking through Battery Park when he made the realization.
It was just the two of them, sitting next to each other on the bench. In the midst of crying babies and barking dogs- they seemed off in their own worlds of adventures. The covers seemed so familiar, the white, spidery bends across the page. But then he realized- they were his. They were his books, being read by complete strangers.
A sense of euphoria rose inside of him as he spied the blue thread being used as the bookmarks, the steaming cups of tea next to each other, hands clasped as they flipped the pages. He didn't say hello as he walked by, his lips curling into a smile. It was an image that was left inside his memory because it was so much like his own with Laura- the fiery red, haired girl with the golden eyed boy.
A/N: I know, I haven't updated in a long time but classes are always hard during the first few weeks! Anyway, this actually happens at Park Slope. I got Girl With the Dragon Tattoo because it was lying on someone's doorstep for people to take. I love book lovers.
Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it!