Hot take: someone told me my 'found art' bookmarks were just trash and it made me think

I used to just tape any old thing into a book I was reading, like a gum wrapper or a bus ticket, and call it a 'time capsule' for the next person. Then a friend looked at my copy of 'Dune' with a dried leaf stuck in it and said, 'That's not a bookmark, that's just a mess. It adds nothing.' Ouch, but fair. Now I only leave things that actually connect to the book's story or feel like a real message. Like, I put a postcard of the Oregon coast in a book about shipwrecks, or a recipe for apple pie in a cozy mystery set in a bakery. It's way more fun to think about the link. Does anyone else try to match the bookmark to the book's vibe, or is that overthinking it?

3 comments

3 Comments

white.nathan1mo ago

That worry about the next reader missing the link is real. I once left a foreign coin in a travel memoir, and my sister just thought I was messy. The fun is in the making of the link, even if it's a secret handshake only you know.

jade_johnson1mo ago

What happens if the next reader misses your intended link, like not knowing why a specific postcard is there? Your deeper idea could be lost if the connection is just for you.

-1

fiona_murphy1mo ago

Missing the link is a risk, but maybe the secret is part of the charm. It's like a little gift to your future self when you find it again. The reader gets their own story from it anyway.