In my version of heaven, there is a treasure chest filled with all the beloved items lost in this lifetime:
- the brand new sweater that I left behind at the outdoor theater in Vermont;
- the Tiger Eye ring with the tiny diamond that my first love gave to me– dropped on the floor of a pub in London while in a heated argument with my father;
- the tooth I lost and then really lost at age 7 in the tall grasses of my backyard in New Port News, Virginia.
I won’t need to recall all of my misplaced things because Heaven keeps track. In fact, not only will lost items be found, but things once broken will be repaired, anew:
- the tea set my aunt gave me
- my grandmother’s cookie dish
- my son’s penguin sculpture
Even things worn out, like my father’s cardigan or my husband’s scooter, will be restored.
What else might I find in this treasure chest, I wonder?
What about lost or broken or used up states of being— like innocence and play and pure faith?
What about my mother’s voice, my grandfather’s jokes, my Nana’s embrace?
What would you find, anew?
Two Owls Calling 
Here’s my list, Kelly … in part
My Daddy’s old Steinway grand piano. Lost to me.
My grandfather’s warm embrace.
My collie, Queen of Sheba.
My salmon colored raincoat lost at Harvard summer school.
My old journals, accidentally thrown away when my parents sold my childhood home.
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Now that is an interesting thought problem indeed…
I can’t think of a single physical item to be replaced. All of the things I would want to find are intangible; The friendships lost from childhood, the voice of one of my college lovers as she sounded in the morning refreshed, the feelings of joy at simple things.
An interesting thought problem indeed.
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Hi Kelly,
My list is this:
1. Mrs. Beasley (She was my best friend when I was little and over the years misplaced when my parents moved)
2. Gold Heart Ring (My Mom gave to me when I went to my first dance..I lost it being careless)
3. Aunt Jo. She was my great aunt (My Dad’s aunt) who passed a few years back. She was my best friend. She taught more than I could even begin to explain. Crochet, baking, making spaghetti gravy and homemade spaghetti and gnocchi. I miss taking my crochet project to her for inspection only to have her rip it out because I made a mistake and it had to be correct. I miss all those “quotes” she used to tell me (and think I wasn’t listening) which I find myself repeating every day.,”Aunt Jo used to say…” I miss the smell of her house when you walked in and smelled spaghetti gravy that had been simmering all day. BUT the 2 more important things I miss about her are when I complained or cried about something she would say in her stern Italian voice “NOW LOOK..YOUR A STRONG PERSON”…(What I wouldn’t give to hear one more “NOW LOOK”) AND LASTLY I TRULY MISS that she was always the last person I spoke to on the phone before I went to sleep at night.
Again, thanks for your stories. I LOVE the fact that you always make me think, I guess your job as a writer.
One of your biggest fans,
Trish
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