I honestly think that once a year I stumble across a book that touches my heart and changes my soul. Last year, it was Home Front. This year, it very well may be One Mountain Away.
The story centers around several main characters: Charlotte, Ethan, Taylor, Maddie, Sam, and Willow. The first four are family; the last two are their friends. Charlotte is the character that connects all of the others. She has made some mistakes in her life and is working to correct them, mainly with her daughter, Taylor, so that she can finally meet her granddaughter, Maddie, a ten year old girl who suffers from epilepsy.
The story is written in alternating chapters, beginning with Charlotte's journal and then switching to a third person account of the story. I love reading Charlotte's journal entries. They are filled with emotion and thoughtfully reflect upon the choices she's made throughout her life. We learn why she is who is is, where she came from, why she's worked so hard throughout her life, why her marriage failed, why her daughter hates her, and why she so desperately wants to make things right.
I don't want to ruin the story and tell more than I should about any part of the plot, so if you will indulge me for a moment, I'll share why this book left me in tears.
I have come to a point in my life where I have finally been able to admit what's really important and what's not. I grew up thinking that a successful life is one filled with "stuff." The more stuff you had, the more successful you were. Cars, a big house, lots of kids...it all equalled success in life. Oh, how wrong I was. But when you live in a world that values things over people, it's hard not to think this way. But, I have been able to catch tiny glimpses into those "successful" lives over the past year and discovered how truly sad some of those "successful" people are. Stuff doesn't matter. People matter. And yet, it isn't until we are faced with some sort if life changing event that we are forced to confront this truth and to accept it. Charlotte had to. Lucky for us, we can learn from her fictional story before, God forbid, we ever have to face it in real life.
Personally, I haven't had to face what Charlotte faced, but I've had my own struggles over the past year and I am grateful that I am still here, living in my house, with my family still intact and still loving me. As I read the final 100 pages of this book this afternoon, sitting with my family as they watched a movie, I was brought to years. I was sad for Charlotte and Ethan, who found each other just a little too late. I was sad for Taylor who missed life with her mom for too many years. I was sad for Maddie who never knew her grandmother. But I was grateful that I learned the lesson Charlotte learned 12 years before she learned it. I learned it before my marriage failed, before my children left, and before I needed to work fast I make up for lost time. As I read the last page, the tears rolled down my face, as I said a silent prayer that one day Rob and I will meet again, when we leave Earth. I can't imagine a day without him, on this planet or otherwise.
Read One Mountain Away . Then love your family. Tell them every day that you love them. Keep your priorities straight. Be nice to others and don't hold revenge in your heart. Help people when they need it without forgetting that you need to take care of yourself first. This story is a good reminder of how we all should behave. I will carry a little piece of Charlotte with me from now on.
Happy reading, everyone.
:). Dodie
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