Monday, April 8, 2013

spooner spawns forker in indiana town


i don't remember having a spooner as a child. but, at some point my mom bought a pretty cut glass container, set it in the middle of the kitchen table, filled it with teaspoons and called it a spooner. a bit of research just taught me that a spooner or spoon holder dates back to the victorian era when having a pretty "vase" of spoons on the table was a welcoming gesture and also a sign of at least modest wealth.



when i moved back to hagerstown a couple of years ago i wanted a spooner. looking back, i may have thought that my days of being spooned were over (hee hee) so i needed to creatively add the word spoon to my vocabulary in another way. who knows. i'm just weird about these kinds of things, i guess. i'm not fond of cut glass so i wanted a more unique vessel. my friend bonnie and i were shopping an antique store and bonnie spotted a clear glass container that reads "keystone egg and cream beater". it was love at first sight and i adopted it as my spooner.




a few weeks ago bonnie and i were shopping another antique mall in indy and i eyed a man inspecting a clear glass container that had "feet" and some markings that i couldn't quite see. i got as close as i could without invading his personal space. then he called his wife over and she inspected it as well. i heard him say something about it having been part of a mixer set. i was intrigued and i wanted it . . . bad!




bonnie and i went on our way and i saw a lot of cool things in that mall but my mind was still on that footed container. i figured the couple had already bought it but, always hopeful, i wandered back by its location before we left. and there it was. when i actually had it in my own hands i could see that it had measurements on one side -- 1/4 PT. up to 1 1/2 PT. i had no idea what i would do with it but i gladly paid the $9 price to make it my own.


on our way home bonnie asked what i planned to do with the measuring jar and i replied that i really had no idea. i was simply attracted to it. days and days later i was grabbing a spoon out of my spooner when it hit me. why would i be a narrow-minded, discriminatory person? why give spoons so much extra attention and leave the forks in a dark, boring drawer? so, yes, i grabbed my forks from their dungeon, put them in that magical container and created my own forker. yes i did! and i smile every time i need a fork, yes, i do!






Friday, April 5, 2013

shamrock


delicate and fragile
silently hiding in the shade
your glory shines
in your trefoil leaves
and long slender stems



constant and abiding
you greet me each morning
illiciting a smile
and a prayer of thanksgiving
for the blessings you give




kindred spirits like us
understand that beauty fades
but the joyous hearts
at our core
are reborn in the morning sun

photos (c) julie king