Etched Glass
--journal entry June 17, 1989 (page 14 in original Paperdolls: Healing from Sexual Abuse in Mormon Neighborhoods)
This is called "Invocation” and it’s from 1050 A.D. I found it in a church in Europe when I was a teenager on a semester abroad. I loved the poem so much I had it etched and it’s still a magnificent piece in my home. It reads:
God within me God without
How shall I ever be in doubt?
There is no place where I may go
And not there see God's face, not know
I am God's vision and God's ears
So through the harvest of my years
I am the sower and the sown
God's self unfolding and God's own.--Invocation, 1050 A.D.
I write this to you today, as a reminder, you are “God’s self unfolding and God’s own.”
This photo of the etching proves, you are receiving this missive directly from April Daniels. No one else could have it. I had the etching custom made. I am the co-author of Paperdolls: Healing from Sexual Abuse in Mormon Neighborhoods (If you still have a copy of the original book, I write about this etched glass on page 14).
Through-out these decades since Paperdolls was first released, I’ve received hundreds, maybe thousands, of notes and letters from other survivors. I read every one. I am honored you reached out. Words defy me too frequently. It was impossible to respond to them all. Please know: my heart is with you.
Always,
April