Dear Uncle Jerry,
Just found this from you, resting in my mail caddy at home. The envelope arrived nearly four years ago, bearing not one pope but two, along with your account of their shared sanctity and same-day canonization. After my eyes read the contents, my fingers found this holding spot for them. Then both faculties forgot all about what they had tucked here.
I enjoy re-reading your letter now and knowing your spiritual esteem for this pair of pontiffs: "I felt that they were both very saintly men."
You tell me of John Paul II's connection to Hyde Park via his friendship with the late Msgr. Sypek of St. Adalbert Parish. You say there's much more that you could write but confess, "I'm not in the mood." While your fine penmanship still shows through, at 84 your hand and your 'correspondurance' are getting a bit shaky.
I suddenly wonder what it was about our connection that moved you to send me all this then, and what prompts me to re-discover it here now.
No matter — the vast majority of collectible cards you amassed during your lifetime came from the Mass State Lottery, and they required special handling to have any value. These two that you sent need no manipulation whatsoever. Their sheer perfection is their mere selection, by you for me, from love, toward a higher life. That's the prize!
With love and gratitude,
Laurie
P.S. – Regarding the upside-down American flag stamp, and the bit of cloth tape holding it on: I'll save my ruminations on that for another post....
