A Morning Note and a Heavy Heart

“I am not feeling good this morning I had a bad dream last night & It makes me feel uneasy”

Pull up a chair, friends, and let me show you something special I found tucked away in the archives. It is a tiny slice of life from July 11, 1900, written on a single sheet of yellowed, lined paper. You can see the horizontal creases where it was likely folded into a pocket or an envelope, and the stains at the top and bottom tell us it has been through a lot over the last hundred years. The handwriting is a beautiful, old-fashioned cursive, written in ink by someone who was just trying to get a few thoughts down before the day really began.\n\nThe writer was sitting there, likely in a quiet kitchen, waiting for breakfast to be served. Even in the middle of a busy life, they took a moment to reach out to someone named Willie. There was some business to attend to—getting folks like Mr. Brown and Mr. Thomas to settle a matter, and then making sure a document got sent over to George Elmore for a signature. It sounds like a bit of legal or property business, the kind of things that kept families moving forward back then.\n\nBut what really touches my heart isn’t the business talk; it is the human side of the note. The writer admits to Willie that they aren’t feeling quite right. They had a bad dream the night before, and it left them feeling uneasy and unsettled. Isn’t it something how a dream from over a century ago can still echo today? We have all had those mornings where we wake up with a heavy heart, even when we have chores and errands to run.\n\nThis little letter reminds us that history isn’t just about big battles or famous leaders. It is about the quiet moments at the breakfast table and the small worries we share with our loved ones. It tells us that no matter how much time passes, we are all connected by these simple, everyday feelings. Even back in 1900, people were just trying to get through their to-do lists while dealing with the mysteries of a restless night.

Original Transcription

July 11 1900
Dear Willie
While I am waiting on
breakfast – I will try &
write you a few lines
Willie I wish you all
would have Loomis to
get Mr Brown and
Mr Thomas to fix up
that matter and then
Send it up to George
Elmore and have him
Sign it Willie I am
not feeling good this
morning I had a bad
dream last night &
It makes me feel
uneasy Well I will
not try to write much
more I will write you
a gain before long