I was digging through my files today when I unearthed a gem.

It’s an old Nanaimo bus schedule from 1998. Actually, it’s a bus schedule for Nanaimo and region, this is the Parksville side, which is a city just north of Nanaimo. I have a lot of old bus schedules, but this one is very special to me.

If you look closely at it, you’ll notice some oval blotches in a vertical line down the page. These were created by the sun.

In 1998 until early 1999 I lived in my last foster home. It was a hard time, but I still believed I was capable of doing anything, going anywhere and being anyone I wanted. I had a lot of hope. It was probably the most optimistic period of my life.

And although that optimism and energy has faded with the harsh realities of growing up, I will always have a physical reminder of that hope.

My bedroom in that foster home was a large basement room with ample shelving along all the walls. I kept all kinds of things up there: books, sculptures, models and random paperwork.  I had a bus schedule up there for months on end. I never moved it. I normally had my blinds closed, so the sun only made its way through the little holes in the blinds before landing on my bus schedule.

As you can see, only those small holes were bleached out – the rest of the pamplet is unmarked. It’s a wonderful example of nature creating order.

I get chills down my spine every time I pick it up.  For me, holding this schedule is the closest thing to physically touching hope, a better future.

So, I’d like to share it with you. Perhaps you have a physical object that connects you to something greater. If so, I’d love to hear about it. What is it? What does it mean to you?