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A long time ago
when we were just married
and we had no money at all
there was a beautiful brass jardinière
in the window of an antique shop.
Every time we walked past
we stopped to look at it
and felt sick with wanting it.
One day we decided that
even though we had no money
we must find a way to buy the jardinière.
It had been sold the day before.
I have been searching for my jardinière ever since.
This one came from the Tavistock pannier market
It cost £14.50 and I know it was a bargain
but I am still looking for my jardinière
in the windows of antique shops.
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We were in love with a chair from Conran.
ReplyDeleteI think it was $75.
Yes, we were in love with a dentist cabinet and we were so damned dirt poor. It was absolutely beautiful and it was way, way back in the late 60's. Gasp, yes. that long ago. I think that it was about $40.00 then, but that way exceeded our monthly budget for food.
ReplyDeleteI think that sometimes when looking back at the poorest years we have had, I do feel such gratefulness for them. Would I want to go through those many years again? NO. Were they important and somehow good? Yes.
But, and please, I don't want to do that again.
Oh, my..this brings such a smile to my face. Am I crazy, probably yes. I love that you and your love have such memories. Whew..tell me to shut down. Blackbird does it well, short and to the point.
Sometimes the hunt is the best part.
ReplyDeleteWe know. We've been looking for certain things for years too, after missing out in early years. We once lived for an entire year on just under £3000 in 1985 (- but we had no mortgage). Our weekly food budget was £12 for two adults and a 6yr old and we took a calculator everywhere - but tinned mackerel, for instance, was 12p a tin and it's now nearer £1. We ate a lot of pasta! I remember standing in a shop longing to buy a Windsor chair which was £37- still haven't got one.
ReplyDeleteA poetry book I had as a child and which was lost in a house move when I was 10 yrs old. I can't remember the name of the book, but I do remember all the poems. I must go to Hay-on-Wye!
ReplyDeleteBobby x
Ah yes. The simple days of big dreams and little money. In many ways they are the source of the best memories... :)
ReplyDeletewe were seriously short of brass ...
ReplyDeleteHa!
ReplyDelete(We bought a rug, but I think it was with birthday and christmas money from our parents.)
I once had a necklace that had been brought back from India long ago as a present for a servant and had been given to me by my mother. I left it in a fitting room trying on a jumper and when I went back it was gone. I look in every fitting room I go into. And it was 10 years ago. Still heart broken. Cx
ReplyDeleteGolly, I wish I could find it for you! :-)
ReplyDeleteStephanie
i am certain that when these sort of little tragedies happen, we love the memory of the item 25 years on, so much more than we would love the item had we been able to have it. the cherished idea is as dear as the actual ownership. or so i tell myself.....
ReplyDeleteIl faut cultiver notre jardiniere ...
ReplyDeleteOh, I do so hope you find it one day.
ReplyDeleteNearly everyone must has something like that! For me it was a carving, an ivory or bone walnut, regular walnut size that opened to show a nest of baby rats inside. I fell in love with it at once, being born in the year of the rat, and they were just so . . . perfect sleeping under that shell. If I remember at the time it was $35, much more than I could spend on something that was not necessary. But, I remember it, oh I do remember it! Perhaps if I actually had it, it would not mean as much . But the next time I saw something I hungered for so much, a turquoise and purple cloak with a hood, light weight, hand woven, hand dyed, hand made, I bought it and wore it nearly every day for 20 years until it fell apart, literally. Sometimes it's good to have both experiences in your life!
ReplyDelete