‘Epistles’ exchanged during hardship become book for any to appreciate
After years of battling multiple myeloma, Eydie Jones was on her third white blood-cell transfusion in 2000 when she and her husband, John, moved to Little Rock, Arkansas, for her treatment.
With the rare and incurable form of cancer that was attacking her bone marrow and spreading throughout the body, the Joneses’ had to leave their friends, Don and Shirley Young behind.
Don Young met Eydie through John while the two were working together at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Don Young was a certified public accountant at UAB for 30 years, and John Jones worked at the UAB School of Optometry.
Don Young, who lives in Inverness, decided to send Eydie Jones an email each day to provide, if only for a moment or two, a reason for her to smile. The first email was sent Nov. 27, 2000, and he sent them across the miles daily until March 14, 2001.
He compiled them in his new book “The Power of Epistles.”
John Jones referred to the emails as ‘epistles,’ after the 21 letters written by the Apostle Paul throughout the New Testament, because of the anticipation they experienced before receiving them.
“The most enjoyable experience we had were the daily epistles that showed up on our computer screen, eagerly anticipated,” he said. “They were a wonderful source of humor and a welcome respite from the very serious health problems we were dealing with each day.”
When the Joneses moved back to Birmingham after a successful transplant, Don Young and John Jones made a paperback book that contained all of the emails they exchanged after John suggested making copies for friends and family.
After visiting a website for a publishing company, Don Young said he got the idea for writing the book. He pitched the idea he had for the book and was given approval right away.
“It was comic relief,” said Sarah Young, Don Young’s granddaughter who is also helping him promote his book. “It was to take her mind off of the fact that she has this terminal cancer. Everyone was like ‘I’m so sorry’ and empathetic, and she was hearing it over and over again when you’re just trying to enjoy the day.”
Eydie Jones lived for several more years after her transplant, and Young said the couples “had a good time while she was here.”
Young, 96, said the hardest part about selling his book thus far has been people thinking it’s about religion.
“It’s misleading,” Don Young said. “People think it’s religious, and believe me, it’s not. Some people would read the title of the book and if they read some of this stuff they’d might say ‘That’s a lot of silly nonsense,’ and my answer would be ‘Well, thank you, that’s exactly what it was supposed to be.”
His granddaughter, Sarah Young said she isn’t much of a reader, she really enjoyed reading her grandfather’s book.
“When he hired me to promote his book, which is new for me but so much fun, I read the book and thoroughly enjoyed it because it takes anyone out of everyday life and just chills you out,” she said.
She said her grandfather is living proof that people can “live” at any age and that any dream is possible.
“He lives to live,” Sarah Young said. “He has a motto that ‘everyone is entitled to a struggle.’ It’s on the bottom of his emails, and I’ve heard it since I was child. He’s been through things, but he’s risen above it.”