Drifting

I have in my possession 8 diaries which were written by Celesta Taylor during the years 1905 to 1916. I also have many of her letters and photographs that were found at the same time.
With the exception of the letter that closes this book, all the prose entries that follow were taken directly from her diaries. Although I selected only those entries that I felt were the most interesting and relevant to the telling of her story, I have not changed her words in any way. Even errors in grammar and spelling were left untouched.
The haiku are mine. I wrote them as I imagined Celesta might have. Of course, she was a woman and I am a man. Also, she was born almost a hundred years before I was. Still there are experiences and emotions that are universal and timeless. It is into these that I tried to tap.
There might have been more diaries, but I suppose that we may never know, although I still have fantasies of stumbling across one in a flea market. Until that time, we will have to make do with what I have.