To know me as a kid was to know that I was a voracious reader. I was always the top Accelerated Reader. I slept with books in my bed. My 4th grade teacher even used to bribe me with the promise of solo trips to the library after I completed each of my assignments as long as I agreed to stop talking to and distracting the other students who were still working. 🥴😂 Books were my everything. School, in general, was one of my favorite places in the world to be. Because not only was I smart and my teachers always nurtured that (my inner Leo loved all the pomp and circumstance), but prior to being in foster care it was the one place I knew I’d eat that day. And having unfettered access to books of every kind was the cherry on top! I read EVERYTHING I could get my hands on. But for the 1000s of books I’ve read in my lifetime, none of them made as lasting of an impact as the ones written by my favorite author, Mary Higgins Clark. There was just something about her world of cashmere and summer houses that made me feel like I could go anywhere. Be anything. So when I recently learned that several of her books had been turned into movies, I stayed up all night—just like I used to do as a kid—and watched them all. And during that trip down nostalgia lane, I stumbled upon the Instagram page of her granddaughter, @elizabethhigginsclark. I shared with her some of the very personal memories I have that are attached to places and people I learned about from her grandmother. It was such a full circle moment for me. If only I’d know it would lead to this day. I always knew I could go anywhere I wanted in this life. But even I never DREAMED I’d one day share such a special connection to the Queen of Suspense. My personal queen. Elizabeth, it’s clear the bond you shared with your grandmother and I know how much it must mean to you to part with her things. I don’t take that for granted. You have given little Blake the greatest gift of my life and I will forever cherish it. I owe you a million ‘thank yous’. I know she’s proud of the woman you’ve become. And though I never had the opportunity to meet her, something tells me she’d be proud of me, too. ❤️