Saturday, September 02, 2006

Whose handwriting is that?

WOW! Again I have found a piece of paper with quotes jotted down and I stared at the paper wondering "Whose handwriting is that? Who wrote that and why do I have it?"

After flipping the paper over I observed that on the other side was some information for an online search about lab support regarding microbiologists. It definitely would not be one of Harley's papers.

Upon flipping the paper back over again and examining the list of authors who wrote the quotes I finally recognized the writing. While the handwriting is not the most beautiful it is still nice looking and legible. The letter shapes in the name "Martin Luther King Jr." and "Goethe" became familiar to me as I identified the writing as my own.

Now staring at the paper revealing my long lost handwriting it is as if looking at an ancient script written by a physical being that is gone. I can no longer identify with the handwriting and I wonder about the person who wrote it. I am amazed that it is my own.

This is not the first time that this has happened. Over the past year we have been doing lots of cleaning out and moving around of things. I have found old school notes that I have written and many tasks lists and diagrams. Each time I am always bewildered by my prior multitasking skills, things that I accomplished, and my good penmanship.

It is an odd sensation. When I see these things I feel as though I have known the person but I am not the person. This ranges from handwriting to pictures of me prior. It is like carrying a "symbiant" where I have that person's memories inside but I am a different physical being.

In case you are curious, here are the quotes I had written down years ago:

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." -Martin Luther King Jr.

"There is nothing in which people more betray their character than in what they laughed at." - Goethe

"Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity or registering wrongs." - Charlotte Bronte

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