Keepsies

The first that one caught his eye  –
a glass sphere with black and blue stripes –
was called a “toothpaste,”
an ordinary type.

His grandfather rattled off words:
clambroth and onionskin,
turtle and pearls;
the language of his new obsession.

The twisting orbs were beautiful
but more than that:
simple. An easy way to lose
the day’s blues, a family spat.

For decades he lined his walls,
a collection unparalleled in size,
each time he left the house
he’d come home with another prize.

Until a day came
he couldn’t recall
his wife, nor a reason
to collect marbles.

One man’s love for marbles lasts a lifetime – May 12, 2015