Mary Potter Kenyon - Mary & Me: A Lasting Link Through Ink

Praise for Mary & Me

Mary & Me is a powerful testament to the beauty of friendship as told through decades of letter writing. In a disarmingly personal depiction, Kenyon and Humston lead us through a story of friendship that withstands time, distance, and all the joy and heartache that life can offer.

HEATHER GUDENKAUF New York Times and USA Today bestselling author

This book is a pure tribute to friendship, letter writing, and, most of all, love. The shared experiences of loss, faith, and letting go between Mary and Mary arent just inspiringtheyre enough to push you out of your own comfort zone to be a little braver today. No doubt, this is the sort of story that will make you want to try harder, love people better, hold the good ones in your life tighter, and leave no collection of words left unsaid. In short, this book captures the real stuff of life. The real stuff.

HANNAH BRENCHER Creator of MoreLoveLetters.com, TED speaker, and author of If You Find This Letter

Through friendship and a treasure trove of handwritten letters, Mary & Me shows how our connections to one another make life precious. Mary Potter Kenyon and Mary Jedlicka Humston have given us the gift of a heartfelt and endearing memoir that will stand the test of time.

JOHN SCHLIMM Award-winning author of Five Years in Heaven: The Unlikely Friendship That Answered Lifes Greatest Questions

A book about the joy of letters is always a cause of celebration, and when it is also a book about the incomparable consolations of friendship expressed through letters, the celebration is even greater. Mary & Me offers beautiful proof that there is no better demonstration of true friendship than through letters: shared confidences that address our sorrows, our joys, and our need for each other.

NINA SANKOVITCH Bestselling author of Tolstoy and the Purple Chair and Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Celebrating the Joys of Letter Writing

Mary Kenyon is one of those rare women who walked into my world and became an instant lifelong friend. She exudes love of family, faith, integrity, and beauty, and those things shine in her writing and relationships. Mary & Me: A Lasting Link Through Ink , cowritten with Mary Jedlicka Humston, offers rich wisdom about the art of friendship and the beauty of commitment that goes beyond the limits of time and space. Mary and Mary show how words enrich us, give us life, and bond our spirits and souls.

SHELLY BEACH Christy Awardwinning author of twelve books and coauthor of Love Letters from the Edge

The letter writing that conspired weekly for nearly thirty years to create this book is a model of friendship and love that makes me wish to turn back the clock and re-create this for my own life. The world would be a more beautiful place if everyone would engage with each other in the same way that the Marys have.

WENDY WOLFF Author of The Letter Writing Project

In this book, the two Marys focus on friendship through the written word, two topics near and dear to my heart. For twenty-five years, I have made my living as a writer, and although I love my job, it is when I put my pen to paper and write to my friends that I feel happiest. Sharing my life and inner thoughts with someone who listens, cares, and responds, even if that friend is miles away, is key to my well-being. This book is a wonderful reminder of how much we need others, and how, for many of us, that comfort, joy, and happiness comes in an envelope in the mailbox.

TAMARA ORR Author of A Parents Guide to Homeschooling and over 400 childrens books

Mary & Me

Mary & Me

A LASTING LINK THROUGH INK

MARY POTTER KENYON & MARY JEDLICKA HUMSTON

Acknowledgments

Mary Potter Kenyon

Behind every author, there is a team of players that makes writing a book possible. For each of my books, there have been two key encouragers who no longer reside on this earth: my mother, Irma Rose Potter, and the husband who shared my life for thirty-four years, David Edward Kenyon. This particular book is also made possible because of the support of my eight children, particularly the three that lived with me during the months I completed it: Emily Rose, Katherine Terese, and Abigail Grace. I hope that by seeing their mother follow her dreams, they will never hesitate to follow their own.

If it seems strange to also thank ones cowriter in an acknowledgement, well then, I am guilty of being an oddity, because this book wouldnt exist without Mary. Everyone should have their own Mary.

I would be remiss if I didnt thank my brother, Lyle Potter, and his wife Cindy, for their generous offer of a writing retreat in their beautiful home in Cedar Falls.

And, of course, I express my gratitude to the many new friends I have made just in the last five years, some whose essays grace these pages, and those whose hearts have touched my own. Special thanks to Shelly Beach, who has been bravely battling health issues, and whose grace and spirit of friendship has blessed me and countless others.

Mary Jedlicka Humston

Thanks to my husband Jim, whose love and support for me and my writing has never wavered.

Thanks also to Jill and Andrew (Asher and Orrin), Liz and Greg (Zoey), and Jon and Tina (Levi), whove given me love, love, love.

Many thanks to my parents, who always believed in me, and to Jims and my siblings and their spouses, who have been through thick and thin with me.

Thanks to all my dear, dear friends from high school, college, teaching, playgroup, church, TOPS, PEO, Christian Womens Club, and Bible studies; neighbors; and those from so many other walks of my life: your friendship and encouragement bless me beyond measure.

Thanks to the University Club Writers of Iowa City and the Iowa City Branch of the National League of American Pen Women (and past groups: John Tigges Dubuque writing group and The Cottage Writers), who have all helped me become a much better writer.

And, lastly, my love and thanks to my dear friend Mary Potter Kenyon. I am privileged to have cowritten Mary & Me: A Lasting Link Through Ink with you. I will always treasure the journey we have taken. Now, wait. Hold on. I need to go write you a letter about all this before I forget the details.

The Marys thank all our guest essayists for the wonderful way their unique stories of friendship enriched Mary & Me . We would also like to thank Jill Humston, winner of our subtitle contest, and Daniel Kenyon, photographer for our back cover author photo.

Contents

Introduction

I have long felt that if a writer cannot write a letter that will move someone, writing a book that moves a lot of someones may be too much to expect of her.

Robert Benson, Dancing on the Head of a Pen

The length of the friendship never brought astonishment. After all, the majority of Baby Boomers could likely claim a long-standing friendship in their lives. No, it was always the letters: the-pen-on-paper, inside-a-stamped-envelope, mailed-in-a-mailbox letter that was awe inspiring.

Youve been writing a letter every week for almost thirty years? The question always evokes disbelief, particularly since the dawn of the Internet and email. We quickly correct the misconception.

Well, at least one letter, but usually more. We write each other three or four letters a week. And we never wait for a return letter before beginning another.

Conservatively speaking, at just three letters a week since 1987, that would equal 4,368 letters each, but wed both agree that estimate is much too low. We have, on occasion, written each other two letters in a single day.

Not long ago, I was the featured speaker for one of the many groups Mary is a member of. The subject was writing and my success at having three books published. At the conclusion of the presentation, I welcomed questions from the audience. My answer to How did you two Marys meet? included mention of our letter-writing relationship. Astonished gasps echoed from each corner of the room.