I snagged this ancient LP -- the soundtrack from the classic murder mystery, Charade, at the Gift House last month. I thought I'd give the record to my husband for Christmas. He is an occasional Mancini fan.
It sat on my desk in my office for awhile, giving off a pretty terrible moldy smell. When I couldn't take it any more, I decided to toss it out. I pulled out the album from the sleeve to see its condition. A note fell out. A love note.
There are no names mentioned, or dates recorded. But the handwriting seems to be a woman's, and fairly old fashioned -- a sort of well-bred, private school type of cursive that has gone out of use. It was written on the binding of a hardcover book (!) and then torn out.
The author describes love as "maturity of spirit" and "the power that transcends all things petty."
"It is," she says, "you in every way."
The love she has been given is "a gift to cherish forever. My life is complete. I need nothing more than to know you love me, and this I know with all my being."
