Wednesday, November 11, 2020

THE CLOCK

Weekly Scribblings.  "...it's only with the heart one can see rightly."  Those words, plus the carnival painting by Shelle Kennedy, inspired my prose this week.  Moments in time cling to certain treasured items, and it is so with the carnival clock.  Submitted to Poets & Storytellers United   November 11, 2020

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    THE CLOCK

 Sitting on my shelf with grace and dignity is a carnival clock my father won in the shooting gallery of a little traveling carnival over 75 years ago.  In my treasured store of memory I see them still, my father determined to win the clock, and my mother not wanting him to spend another dollar for six more shots.  At last five mechanical ducks fell from the moving row, the clock was handed to my smiling father, and the clock was given a place of honor in the kitchen of our little farmhouse, where it kept the time for all the years of my growing up and moving on in my life.  Twice they moved, and twice the clock was given a place of honor in each new home. They’re gone now to what comes after, and the clock has come to me, equally proudly displayed in my home each time I’ve moved. I smile at the electric cord, spliced by my father with electrical tape, showing traces of paint from long ago redecorating projects.  It is a piece of family history, a memento of the times that used to be.   I like to think it will one day be a treasured part of family history displayed in the homes of those who come after me, as much a part of family as the spiraling chains of knowledge hidden in every cell of their bodies.

18 comments:

  1. I can see your smile as your dad handed you the clock. I bet your mother was smiling just as bright by then. And her soul is probably smiling even brighter, as she sees what that moment and this clock mean to you.

    Love the sweet, nostalgic tone of the piece.

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  2. Oh how beautiful to own such an heirloom. May it be a blessing in many more generations

    Happy Wednesday Bev. Thanks for dropping by to read mine

    Much💗love

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  3. I feel pangs of I'm not sure what as I read this piece, for none of my children want any of the family heirlooms that are dear to me. After I'm gone, they (the heirlooms) will end up at the Salvation Army Thrift Store or in the dumpster.

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    1. I will haunt my children if someone doesn't take care of this clock!! Fortunately, my son and daughter, nieces and nephews are all nearly as soppy sentimental as I am! I had a house full of antiques that were not wanted and I let go, but I hung onto the clock.

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  4. It's a lovely clock!

    I'm glad my firstborn is very happy to have our family heirloom clock, which I gave to him years ago. He loves it and keeps it in pride of place.

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  5. Whether it is a clock or some other memento these items are precious as it tells of our past, and family and the way we lived in times that were so different to today.

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  6. Bev, I took time to slowly read what I knew was going to be a tear-jerker of a story. I sit here in my living room, a fire in our fireplace, chops with dressing baking in the oven ~~~ I ponder life and give thanks for the precious memories both of us cherish. Thank you.

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  7. Your carnival clock is beautiful, Bev. I can imagine your father aiming a rifle at a row of ducks, determined to win the clock – and it survived house moves and the test of time – 75 years!

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  8. I love how neatly you have conveyed the story and the feelings and memories the clock contains...long may it be passed on

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  9. This is sooo nice, Beverly. I am glad that you have the clock. My clock story is similar, it was always in my parents home. I am not sure where it fit when they moved to town, but it was always in plain sight on the farm. It is a wooden clock standing, with a pendulum behind its glass door. It would still run but we don't wind it or have it oiled. Mrs. Jim keeps in her study, nestled in her bookcase. We have five others with less history. (This one's history for me begins with my parents, I don't know how they got it. It is a name brand of the late 80's to the early 1900's.)
    Please print and keep this lovely telling story along with the clock for your kids or whoever gets it.
    ..

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    1. Thanks, Jim. I plan to put the story in an envelop and affix it to the back of the clock, hoping it will be read by generations to come!

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  10. I love the story of your clock and how you treasure it.
    My treasures are two low/foot stools my dad made, possibly before I was born. (He was pretty skilled at woodwork). I just love the simplicity of them and that dad made them is an added bonus.
    Anna :o]

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    1. I had a rocking chair that had been made for my great grandmother in which she rocked my grandfather when he was a baby. I had no place for it in the new house, but fortunately a loving niece has taken custody and promised to carry its story on. Somehow I feel they know we're being good stewards of their efforts!

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  11. A wonderful treasure. If it could talk, it would have many stories to tell, and I hope that it collects many more stories.

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    1. Thank you. I'm sure it will go on collecting stories for years to come. The amazing thing is it has never stopped or needed repair!

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  12. Precious memories, stories passed down through an heirloom. Thanks for sharing it with us.

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  13. I love your sentimentality about past heirlooms. I think it is important. I still use the little garlic press of my great grandmother. Her hands must have used it as many times as mine...it means something...we are lucky to still be able to hold these feelings...we have not become the materialistic robots which we are supposed to be.Sorry we have failed the test:)

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