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I was rearranging my bookshelves over the weekend and came across two books that hit me with major nostalgia. Keep Love in Your Heart, Little One and Shel Silverstein’s Where the Sidewalk Ends are two books that hold such sentimental value to my heart.

You know those books that you don’t always pick up a lot or read often, but they still deserve a spot on your shelf? The books that once opened, hit you with a blast of emotions and endless memories from the past? The ones that give you butterflies in your stomach and transport you back decades in time? That’s exactly what these books are to me.

When I open these books and see the handwritten memento from my mom from years ago, tears fill my eyes and love fills my heart. Every night when I was a little girl, my mom would read from Where the Sidewalk Ends, and it quickly became a staple of my childhood. For those who may not know, my mom passed away almost two years ago so anytime I find little reminders of the loving and amazing mom she was, it nearly brings me to my knees. Yes, my days are spent heavy with grief and sadness but they’re also filled with immense gratitude not only for the mom I was blessed with, but because she is the reason I am such an avid reader and writer. Without a doubt, I owe it to her nightly readings.

I’m curious to know what books hold this same type of nostalgic feeling to you all. Is it a baby book from when you were born that you love to browse through or perhaps a book of witty poems like Shel Silverstein’s? Either way, I’m learning to embrace the little things that seem to come out of nowhere and hit me with a brick of emotions, like these two books I happened to find.

Life is all about the small things; memories are all we have left at the end of the day. And I’m so glad I have a few pieces of my mom with me on my shelves.