Found things

After her death,

We cleared out Mother’s house.

Among the found things were

A stained brown envelope with a marriage license from 1932

A jewelry chest full of baubles we never saw her wear

In with the baubles, wrapped in plastic, someone’s baby teeth

An old leather bound Bible we never saw her read

Pressed within its pages, a ringlet of hair, mine I am sure

A four leaf clover

A dried dragonfly

My baby picture, wallet size

In her ancient trunk,

A folded fur, musty smelling

A letter belonging to her mother, who had a lover, dated 1887

Inside the fur, opera glasses

A moth-eaten raggedy Ann (her childhood friend?)

Hat boxes without hats

In fuzzy black and white, she and Dad on the grass

And

A new brown envelope from the Hospital

She never showed us, never showed us.

All gone now.

 

20 thoughts on “Found things

  1. This tugs on the strings attached to the deepenest emotions. Such powerful imagery! I admire your writing style and would love to get your feedback on my work. Stop over at my blog sometimes, and feel free to utilize the post comments to share your thoughts. I am looking forward to reading your subsequent work.

    Liked by 1 person

  2. This almost teared me up? Is it all true? I’m so sorry for your loss. And this line ‘In with the baubles, wrapped in plastic, someone’s baby teeth’, it just shows how pure your mother’s love was that she valued her child’s tooth as much as jewellery. Loved this piece!

    Liked by 1 person

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