A little more than two weeks ago while walking my dog Skylar I happened across what at first appeared to be an oddly shaped stone. It was so shiny lying there on the muddied path, its multi-faceted surface clearly enhanced by the torrents of rain falling from the sky. Curious yet frowning at being caught in a downpour I quickly stepped around the stone and urged Skylar to keep moving. We had only progressed about 50 feet further down the path when an inner nudge encouraged me to go back and check out that stone. Having learned years ago to heed my inner nudges, I quickly made my way back to the glistening stone all the while side stepping ever deepening puddles of water. As it turned out the glistening stone that I was called back to investigate was in fact an arrowhead, expertly chiseled from a piece of gray toned flint. Holding this artifact in my hand I instinctively knew that this hand tool was crafted long ago by a member of the Cherokee nation. In that moment, it wasn’t hard to imagine what life must have been like for these gentle people who both lived in harmony and protected this beautifully wooded land embraced in the glorious backdrop of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Clutching the arrowhead tightly, I hurried back to the house excitement pulsing through my veins eager to share this new treasure with my husband. I had been gifted with something so unique; an item that at one point in time belonged to someone else and now it had made its way through time to find me.
Later that evening, it occurred to me that many of us are surrounded by artifacts many kept in plain view. As I looked around the kitchen my eyes landed on a beautiful bone china sugar bowl that belonged to my grandmother. It is white with delicately painted pink flower petals and its very essence fills me with the memory of sharing cups of hot tea with milk and sugar with my grandmother. Moments later I registered a treasured platter that my grandmother used for years while hosting a life-time of family dinners. It is well worn but I cherish it none the less. As I moved through the house into our bedroom I spot a more recent artifact. A small round china plate with the biblical verse of Corinthians 13 printed in gold script, a symbol of love displayed on our wedding day years ago. Looking around at the items that surrounded me, I was enshrouded in the haze of ever more memories. Distant passages of time quickly made their way into the present beckoning me to linger in the moment and revisit the memories that are forever captured in each one of my possession’s loving embrace.
Our homes, offices and in some circumstances even our cars contain many material possessions or what I like to think of as artifacts; items that have somehow found their way to us many that offer their own storied past. It’s interesting to reflect that each one of these items has its own memories or feelings attached to them. Of course it’s just as easy to walk by day after day and not consciously register these items but they wait, always patient, always looking for the right moment to grab our attention, to remind us of their story. It’s comforting to know that we can all journey back if only for a moment to glimpse once again at the people, places and events that are contained in the artifacts that surround us. Each item is essentially an “environmental affirmation” in our lives; forever holding in place its own memories.
I am so happy that I paid attention to my little nudge that day. I like to think that there was a message in finding that arrowhead. Perhaps it was to slow down for a moment and take the time to really visit my own treasures, the ones that contain such beautiful memories and to make it a point to surround myself with only those items that positively speak to me and that I genuinely love.
© Lori Blevins and http://todayisyourluckdayblog.wordpress.com, May 29, 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Lori Blevins and https://todayisyourluckydayblog.wordpress.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Categories: Inspirational
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