If Only They Could Talk

If Only They Could Talk


I have always been what you could call a yard sale shopper. I cannot count the Saturday mornings spent with my family looking for that perfect bargain. I have furnished my home, bought gifts and clothed my entire family. I've met many interesting people, learned a lot about people in general and saved plenty of money in the end. An estate sale, though, is an altogether different story.

For those who do not know, a yard sale is when people are cleaning out closets, re-arranging, moving, or making room for new things. They are held on lawns, porches, garages, or sometimes in living rooms when the weather is too cold or rainy. They are held in every month, with spring and summer being the best. They are held in big cities and small towns, and in neighborhoods everywhere. An estate sale, on the other hand, is often just as it says - the selling of a persons estate after death. Perhaps I have a melancholy view, but so be it.

I have attended several estate sales with my mother. She quite enjoys them, and has a different view than I. She feels it is a privilege to be able to purchase treasures that the family doesn’t want or need. I feel it is an invasion into a persons personal life. Just a way for the adult children to dispose of family “junk” so as to settle everything before they return to their busy lives. I wonder if they would feel the same way if these items accumulated over the years could talk? If they knew the rich memories behind all of the family junk. If they knew what each piece had meant to the family member.....

Hello, I am Grandfather Clock. I guess you could say I kept the time of this family, not just in minutes and hours, but in memories, too. It was me that father watched as each child was born into this family of mine. It was I who counted the time before the children went off to school, and before father went to work. My numbers taught the children to count. It was I that let out the chimes to signal bedtimes and curfews. Often, I was hated by the children because I signaled the end of some enjoyment, or the beginning of some dreaded chore. Over the years, I’ve seen the children come and grow and move away. It was I that was stopped when father passed away. I didn’t know then if I’d ever run again, but just as life kept on, so have I. Simply standing in this hallway, ticking away the minutes of this families life. Now that mother has passed away, our home is being separated and sold. I wish I could tell them all the things I remember. My memories are for sale at the price of $ 55.00.

I am Miss Mirror. I have hung in this hallway for over fifty years. I was a present from father to mother. He used to stand in front of me, with his hands wrapped around mother, and tell her how beautiful she was. I’ve seen so many smiles! I’ve watched as mother fixed her hair before going to church on Sundays. I’ve watched father check his tie. I watched as son and daughter primped and checked their looks before dates, prom nights, and weddings. I saw the children grow from babies amazed at their reflections, to proud adults. I’ve also seen the tears when the family was told of brothers death in a war, of sisters car crash, and all the little arguments of a family. I’ve seen so much, but can tell them so little. I’m not worn out or used up, but I guess I’m useless to son and daughter. If only they could unlock the memories I have. My price is only $ 35.00.

I am Mrs. Rocker. I’m the one who watched sleeping babies in mothers arms. I remember all the nights of colic, fevers, chicken pox, and broken hearts. I remember all the sleepless nights mother spent with me while waiting for some member of the family to return safely home. I’m the one who stayed up with father when he sorted out problems ranging from a disagreement with mother, to how to pay for daughters wedding. I’ve seen more worry than most of the house, but I’ve seen plenty of joy, too! Like the time mother discovered sons first tooth while nursing him right here! And the time mother discovered what it felt like to rock a grandchild for the first time. So many memories wrapped up for the small price of $ 45.00.

I am Mr. Hammer. I supposedly belonged to father, but spent most of my time with mother. Oh, sure, father used me from time to time. To fix a few things like the nail in the front steps that keeps coming up, or putting up targets for sons first BB gun. Mostly though, I was used by mother. To open stuck windows, open paint can lids, and pull out old nails. I was once used to threaten a sewing machine that wouldn’t cooperate with mother while she was making a quilt for daughters wedding! I’ve had a few new handles over the years, but I work just like new. It seems with my experience, I would be worth more that the price tag of $ 2.00.

My name is Ladle, and I guess I’m the speaker for the kitchen crew. I assume we are the least thought of because we are the cheapest priced. We range from a dime to a dollar. We all wonder if son and daughter remember all the after school snacks, sleep-over party favors, birthday cakes, and Sunday dinners that came from us and mother. Nothing could make us feel better than to see their smiling faces after they had finished eating mothers homemade cookies or special Saturday muffins. The things she made for this family were pure labors of love. The kitchen was so hot in the summer. We didn’t have fans or air conditioning. Mother always made things from scratch, never from a box. Everything in this kitchen speaks of her love for this family. We wonder if our new families will have that same love, or will we be considered outdated and thrown away at the end of this sale. If only we could talk!

With the breakdown of the family unit, it seems to me that some of us have forgotten just what the word family means. Think about your life. About your parents and your children’s lives. Will your children hold memories, or an estate sale price tag at the end of your life? How about you? Will you hold a tag, or will you remember the smiles of a gift given? You know, the trinket box you gave to your mother when you were little? Will you remember the fishing trips with you father when you see his old tackle box, or will you see the price of a lure? Look in your home today. Remember where you got each little knick-knack, each picture. Sure, some things may have no sentimental value, but what about the things that do?
Think about these things the next time you see.......

*ESTATE SALE*
1234 ANY STREET
YOUR TOWN, USA
SATURDAY 9AM TO 2 PM