Ode to a Mug
8 a.m. tea steeps
in my old blue mug
A vestige from 1971, a first purchase
In this union that’s clocked 16,892 days.
Time once stretched forward, infinite,
While the minutes jetted by,
Filled with moves and babies and promise.
Marriage begun with two day-glo daisied orange crates
Today encompasses rooms with
desks – 6, beds –
6, dining tables – 4,
Chairs and bureaus and mirrors, legacies of
Past marriages begun with their own infinite time.
Then the smooth cobalt sides and generous interior
Had promised both style and substance,
A hopeful template for our decades to come.
Now we two must share this old friend,
Its mate long since gone.
It lives safely in the back of the cupboard
Appearing in the quiet of morning or twilight,
Inexplicably unchipped and uncracked,
Souvenir of what was,
Promise of what could still be.
You know I had to look up how many years those days equaled. Good one. We have so little from the beginning of our marriage, mainly just us.
ReplyDeleteA little scary how much we still have. But then I'm married to the guy who's a keeper, while I'm a thrower.
DeleteTwenty-one years of Army moves made us pare things down. But 13 years in the same house finds us stuffed up to the gunwales.
DeleteOne of my motivations for moving 20 years ago to where we are now was the hope (in vain, sadly) that we'd pare down the possessions a bit.
DeleteMusings of a person who empties the dishwasher every night.
ReplyDeleteExactly.
DeleteWe also have very few things from when we started 54 years ago. Some of that is purging for a move from Texas to Oregon. Some of it is a vow not to hang on to those kinds of things but instead pass them on to the children NOW.
ReplyDeleteI love it, especially the 2nd verse. Having just moved what we have now from one house to another, I have had some of the same thoughts.
ReplyDeleteOh yes. And since I am the early riser it would be mine. All mine.
ReplyDeleteLovely ode to an long time companion. I do remember those orange crate days. Some of the best.
ReplyDeleteDis you call this Ode to a blue Mug???
ReplyDeleteGosh, I don't have anything from the early days of my early marriages. I did inherit a bowl from my mother that belonged to her mother. It's the oldest thing I got. I am also married to a thrower and it sure makes it easy for me. I just put something down and stop using it, and it disappears. :-)
ReplyDeleteThat mug is beautiful! I love the colour and shape. And to remain unchipped, uncracked for all those years is remarkable. It's a magical mug.
ReplyDeleteI still have four teaspoons remaining from the sets I was given as wedding gifts in 1971, but any crockery is long gone :(
Funny how attached we can get to things from our past.
DeleteI have a treasured mug, too! Mine is only half as old as yours, but still, I'm amazed it's still with me. (Tempting fate merely by saying that...)
ReplyDeleteI know. When I emptied the dishwasher this morning I tucked it into the back of the cupboard.
Delete