Thursday, December
19, 1985
Santa is coming and mommie says I been a good girl!!!! I
got my pikture taken at school here it is
LOVE ANA
Tuesday, February
10, 1987
Dear Diary,
Mom bought me a pretty new hat for Velentyne
Valentine’s Day I love my family very much. Can’t wait to show the kids at
school!
Gotta go Mom made dinner! And we just got cable,
so after we eat, I can’t wait for Punky Brewster!
All my love,
Ana
Tuesday, May 30,
1989
Dear Diary,
Mom’s off to Spookane for three days. I hate it when she
leaves like this, but I know she has to spread the Good Word. I hope she enjoys
the warm weather!
I guess Dad and I will be “avoiding the Noid” and
ordering out for pizza for a while. Dad always tries to tell me that pizza is
good for me because it has tomatoes, but we both know it’s because he’s the
world’s worst cook. Bless him for knowing his limits!
I’m off to watch the Wonder Years.
All my love,
Ana
Sunday, June 18,
1989
Dear Diary,
Mom’s been missing for nearly three weeks now. I’m really
scared. Dad's really upset too, and if he breaks down, I’ll have no one.
With those wolves and bears getting bolder lately, the
police are very busy and haven’t been much help in finding Mom. I’m taking
matters into my own hands; I WILL find my mother!
The police say they haven’t seen any clues in Spookane,
so I decided to start my search in Reindeer. I’m not used to such wonderful,
lush vegetation, and if I weren’t worried out of my mind, I’d have stopped to
enjoy the crops near the outskirts of town, and the old pretty farm houses.
The Father must love us to give us such beautiful things.
I must have spoken with the entire town, and the only thing
I have to show for it are blisters on my feet and a nasty sunburn.
I couldn’t find mom. I’m starting to feel really sick – I
think I caught a cold in the city. And to make it worse, I lost the hat Mom
gave me for Valentine’s Day a few years ago. I must have left it on the train. I
can’t believe I was so careless.
I’m starting to lose hope. Mom, come home!
-
Ana
P.S. There was one odd thing I forgot to mention: A grungy
looking man with long hair and a peace sign necklace told me that a boy named “Ninten” could help me. My father taught me to never trust anyone who talks like Shaggy
from Scooby Doo. (I’m assuming Dad wouldn’t approve of the man's near constant air-guitaring
and the eating out of garbage cans, either.) But there was something about his
eyes that made me feel like he was telling the truth. It was his crazy version
of the truth, but he was very sincere.
Tuesday, June 20,
1989
Dear Diary,
I found a pair of dentures outside of a big house on a
hill. I thought they might belong to the homeowner, and they did. The kindly old
man filled my bookbag with the worst tasting mouthwash I’d ever had, but
honestly, I think it cured my cold – just like he said it would.
But I’m still no closer to finding my mother.
-
Ana
Friday, June 23,
1989
Dear Diary,
I think my prayers have been answered.
There was another huge snowstorm last night which is
nothing new, but I decided to put off looking for Mom for a while and be there
for my father instead. He looked so much older than he did when Mom was still
here.
Dad and I headed down to the chateau to ask the Almighty
for help and got inside right as the storm was getting really bad.
A few moments later, the doors creaked open. I
thought the wind was to blame, but as I walked over to shut them, two boys caked with
snow appeared. The one with the red hat wiped the snow off, and then ruffled
the younger boy’s hair, shaking snow everywhere.
“I can see why they call this place Snowman,” said red
hat boy. “It’s because you look like one after coming here.”
The younger boy surveyed the chateau with amazement. “What
is this place?”
“Hello, I’m Ana.”
The boys were startled – I guess they hadn’t seen me yet –
but then they looked happy to see a pair of friendly faces.
As soon as he looked at me, I knew that the boy with the
red hat was Ninten. He had the same sincere eyes as the strange man from before.
“Are you Ninten?” I asked. He seemed surprised that I
knew his name, but before I could explain how, I saw what he was carrying. It
was my lost hat! This must have been a sign from above!
"And you," I said to the other boy, "you must be Jeff."
"Why does everyone keep saying that? I'm Loid!"
"And you," I said to the other boy, "you must be Jeff."
"Why does everyone keep saying that? I'm Loid!"
We talked for a while, and Ninten said he had a feeling
he needed to get my hat back to me, but the boys weren’t really sure what to do
after that. Loid was along for the ride because he enjoyed Ninten’s company and
“had nothing better to do on summer vacation than play Gameboy all day.”
When I told him that my mother was missing, Ninten and Loid
both agreed to help me look for her! Since I had already been to Reindeer and
the boys had just come from Merrysville, we decided to head to Spookane.
My father was deep in prayer. I held his hand and he
opened his eyes. I told him I was planning on leaving.
“You’re kind of heart and you’ve got a secret strength,”
he said. “Please don’t get hurt out there. I couldn’t bear losing you, too.”
“You won’t, Dad. And I’m going to find Mom.”
I put on my hat and grabbed my lucky frying pan from the
wall.
“Those are some strange looking baseball bats,” said
Ninten.
“You use frying pans as weapons?” Loid asked.
“Sure. My favorites are the ones from the Paula Deen
collection.”
I looked out the window, and saw that the storm had
stopped. Now was the time to go.
Mom, I know you’re out there and you’re safe. And now
that I’ve found some new friends, I promise you: I will bring you home!
All my love,
Ana
Saturday, July 15,
1989
Dear Diary,
I think I’m in love.
I’ve been trying to ignore it, but it’s driving
me up a wall. We’ve only known each other for a few weeks. It’s crazy. This must be
how Zack Morris feels about Kelly, or how Kevin feels about Winnie Cooper.
I’m going to tell him tonight. Wish me luck.
All my love,
Ana
All photography by Matt.
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