Dear Journal,

I finally got around to making you my official journal. Of course I always passed by you as you sat on my night stand by my bed, but there was so much going in my life that sadly things like taking the time to write on your pages was on the bottom of a very long of list. Well no more of that. I plan to incorporate you into my everyday routine, well when something important happens in my life. I used to think that my life wasn't interesting enough to preserve like this but lately I've been proven wrong. I'll get to that later.

So where do I begin? I could sum up all the little moments I wrote in my old journal before the incident happened. But perhaps a brief summary will do, a culmination of years of my life. For this entry I'll entitle it "Life Before Ponyville."

My name is Lore Weaver, and I was born in Canterlot. Ever since I could remember I was always interested in learning new things and reading. I guess my parents knew what was to come as they gave me my name. It suits me very well, a weaver of lore, a teller of tales. My parents never missed out on an opportunity for me learn whether it was reading to me in bed or taking me to a museum or store. The library though was and is my favorite place to be. Where can you have all that knowledge at your hooves in one area? The library. Where can you be free to spend however long you can in the pursuit of knowledge? A library. Where can you let your imagination and aspirations soar? A library!

My parents first took me there, but as I grew older I traveled there by myself. The best birthday present I got as a foal had to be my library card. It meant that I was old enough to have the responsibility to be able to read on my own and take books home with me. And that's what I did, taking wagon loads of books to and from the library and devouring them in a short time. It was then I learned a gift I had, one where I could easily read and retain knowledge, becoming basically a living breathing library. I only a few ponies who share this ability so I guess that makes me unique.

I know you're probably thinking that because I had so much knowledge in my mind and that I loved learning school was easy for me, right? Wrong. There were several classmates that bullied me, calling me "egghead" and "teacher's pet." They would throw my books and papers around or even hide them from me. For a moment I considered giving up learning things thinking it would make me popular, but I'm glad I didn't do that!

Then came something that I still remember as a crowning moment of my life. Our class was given a project to write our own story and read it to the class. I went home and poured my heart and mind into writing my tale, sheets of white becoming black with ink. I didn't stop except for eating and what little sleep I had. Finally I presented my story, pouring my emotion into it. By the time it was over I had my class silent in amazement and my teacher in tears of joy. Maybe one day I'll write it here, but for now it's safe at my foalhood home. In that day I earned my respect among me peers, but the greatest thing was getting my cutie mark. In terms off marks, mine is kind of complex: an open book with a quill and an ink pot. What it means is two-fold, my love of knowledge and my ability to write stories.

After my regular schooling I went to Canterlot university where I studied Library Science and minored in Creative Writing. After all, what better place to share my knowledge than in a library, and what better place to work than in my favorite place? Sadly though after graduating from the university there were no jobs available in the libraries, so my parents proposed something daring: opening a bookstore in another town where there were no other ones to compete with. It was a challenge as i never owned a business before, but my parents had every faith that I'd succeed. So with their funds they gave me and their blessing they sent me to Ponyville where a new life was waiting for me.

Well this looks like a good place to end this tale so far. Next I will write here about my life in Ponyville, including meeting a future Princess and a tragedy I still have trouble coping with.

Your faithful librarian,

Lore Weaver