R and J in the USA

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Thanks to Rachel at Rowan Oak, a journey of a $10 bill can end with a smile and a new memory.

We rolled into Oxford, Mississippi, home to William Faulkner, John Grisham, and the University of Mississippi, with the van pointed toward Rowan Oak, Faulkner’s home from 1930 to the year of his death in 1962.

Standing in the foyer of the 19^th century Greek Revival house, Ryan pulled from his pocket a $10 bill folded in the shape of a heart to cover the $5 per person cash only entrance fee. Julie took a picture of Ryan holding up the heart-shaped bill to memorialize the event, which prompted a quizzical look from Rachel, Rowan Oak’s assistant curator, who was standing behind the entrance counter. Seeing her curiosity, we told her the story of our heart-shaped $10 bills.

For our wedding, our friends Suzanne and Andy gave us the traditional gift of cash, but in a non-traditional form. The cash included an ornamented $50 bill and several $10 bills neatly folded into hearts. Eight and a half years later, the $10 bills remained heart-shaped and unspent. Our cash reserves were running low by the time we got to Rowan Oak, however, so we needed to unfold a heart and spend it.

Rachel’s expression softened as she tilted her head, warmed by the story. Ryan began to unfold one of the bills to pay the admission fee.

“Oh no!” she said, as if it pained her to see us have to unfold one of the bills. “You don’t have to do that. It’s okay. You can just come in.”

”We understand how you feel. We’ve had them for 8 years and could never bring ourselves to unfold them, but they were given with the intention for us to use them and, it’s time.” Julie attempted to reassure Rachel.

Rachel did not seem particularly reassured. We understood. We had had 8 years to savor them and get past the idea of unfolding them. She had had only minutes to adjust to it. Ryan found a better way to assuage the pain for her.

“It’s alright,” Ryan told her as he pulled another heart-shaped $10 bill out his pocket. “We have others.” We paid the fee and moved on through the home.

On our way out of the house Julie asked Rachel if they sold any Faulkner books. Rachel said no, and explained to us the administrative reason for that. “You can get them at the bookstore in town, though. And for a $5 donation you can get these cedar bookmarks.”

Julie liked the bookmarks, and wanted to support the museum. She asked Ryan if he had $10 to buy a few of them. Ryan reached into his pocket and pulled out a second heart-shaped $10 bill. “I have another one of these.”

“No,” Rachel said, again seeming troubled at the thought of us spending one of those heart-shaped bills.

“You can have them,” she insisted, “You gave me your heart. The least I can do is give you a few bookmarks.”

We both took a beat to soak in the sweetness of her comment.

“I guess the money is worth more than $10 when it’s shaped like a heart,” Julie said.

“Well, it is to me,” Rachel replied.

It was to us as well. These bills traveled from our wedding site in Lake Placid, New York, through eight years and 45 states to land at Rowan Oak in Oxford, Mississippi, a journey bookended by smiles, gifts, and memories: our smiles upon receiving them and Rachel’s smiles upon learning of them; Suzanne and Andy’s gift of them to us and Rachel’s gift of the bookmarks to us; the memories prompted every time we saw them and the memories to be prompted every time we use those bookmarks.

Thanks, Suzanne and Andy, for giving us the gift of those heart-shaped bills. And thanks, Rachel, for giving us the gift of a new memory at their journey’s end.