Finding Marbles

When I was little, I used to visit my cousin's house a lot.  We could walk to the 5 and dime at the corner...and I really do believe it was called that, or something very similar (and you really could buy a piece of candy for a dime...but let me not date myself too much).  We felt pretty cool walking to the store on our own.

Then we would take walks around the block and look for "treasures".  Coins, bottle caps...whatever.  But the biggest treasure of all...always...was finding a marble.  We'd go home and shine it all up like we struck gold.  And then we'd show it off.  So proud and accomplished.  One time, we found the BIG marble...an inch in diameter...wow, what a day! It didn't have any color, but it was a glass marble, and it was huge.  The jackpot of marbles!  On that day, it felt better than Christmas.

There were so many things that were magical in my childhood.

I sat thinking of this one day several years ago and wondered why I never find marbles anymore.  I shared this with my brother, and I swear it wasn't a week later that he handed me a marble that he found in my grandmother's back yard.  I almost cried I was so happy.  In fact, I think I did. 

And it was at that moment I realized...I don't find marbles anymore because I stopped looking.

I could go into a full on essay about the meaning of this as a metaphor for adulthood, but I think it's clear enough on its own.

If you want to keep finding marbles...never stop looking.

They are there, covered in dirt with one tiny edge peeking out.   

And you know how I know this for sure today?  Because yesterday my brother sent me a picture of two marbles that washed out of the dirt in my grandmother's yard...now his yard (the picture here).  He remembered, and he still looks.  And he still finds them.

And now, I should go....there are marbles to be discovered!

~keep looking, there are magical hidden treasures just waiting to be found