Empty or silent?

Were Terry's mother's journals empty or silent?

Good question. I'd go with silent. A silence that had a lot of meaning.

I would have to go with silent as well. Silence can be very profound.

I would go with silent. The letters Terry's mother wrote to her seemed reserved and rather formal. I think her mother was a person who wasn't comfortable sharing even though she seemed to love Terry.

Silent. I believe she'd have had no lack of things to say, she just didn't like that it was mandatory she record her thoughts and events in her life. But personally, I love the idea of recording life. I understand her feelings, in a way, but I certainly wish I'd have kept a consistent diary. I do have bits and pieces here and there, but nothing cohesive. I regret that.

The silence of blank pages of Terry's mother's journals screamed louder than words could have. Powerful is an understatement.

Great question! I think silent and powerful, but harder to understand what she was trying to tell Terry. Empty seems easier to interpret; live your life to the fullest, don't let it be empty.`

I think silent as well. But a silence that screamed for something.

I don't believe that they were empty. Silent is a much better choice. They certainly made the author think. I loved the decisions of why they were blank.

Powerfully, curiously silent - not empty. You do wonder why she bought so many of them!

I wonder if she intended to write in them, someday? I have bought a number of journals, always thinking, "I'm going to write, I really am," and still they are mostly blank. Did anyone else half wonder if they were written in the 'invisible ink' Terry says her mother taught her to make?

I also agreed with everyone above, I thought that her journals were silent, and not empty. But I think that silence was so much more powerful than her writing could have been. At the start of the book, Terry tells us that Mormon women were expected to do two things "keep a journal and bear children". I think this was William's mother's way of saying that there are other ways to be close to god.

I thought of Mother Theresa's quote as I was reading this book, "We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls." I thought it was apropos.