It was just a marble

[dirtlooter]

I had gone to an old house place, it was actually two house places in one. The original house had been built around 1910ish and then torn down and a new one built in the early 60s. Unfortunately, in the late 70's the land was part of land to be used for a lake to supply the town about 15 miles away with water. So the second house was sold and moved farther up the Hollow and the owners moved to another place to live. The house place never was in danger of being covered in water, but the city didn't want anyone living that close to the water supply. Anyways, the house place was swallowed up by nature as the place turned into a very thick thicket complete with blackberries and briars. I made a feeble attempt at detecting the old place but the roots and the mess was just too thick to even swing very much at all. I couldn't do very much because the land now belongs to the city but I still managed a couple of relic finds. I made my way back to see the elderly man that grew up in the original house and helped build the second one. We were sitting at his kitchen table as I told him that I had tried to detect at the old place. He assured me that there would be nothing much to find there because they were pretty poor. I took out a complete Mason jar lid with the glass lid and handed it to him. He looked at it and told me that it had belonged to his grandmother and then he spoke about the good foods that they had canned back then. After he finished, I pulled out the old marble and set it down on the table in front of him. He looked at it and said that it looked like a really old one and then asked where I found it. So I explained that I had found it on the east side of the old foundation, near the huge old oak tree. He suddenly became very quiet as I told him to take a closer look at it. As he picked it up, I could see the tears forming as he stared down at it. So I just had to ask if it could have been his and he quietly nodded yes. He explained that the marbles were pretty much all he had and his sister had some jacks to play with. He looked up at me as I stood up to leave and held the marble out for me to take and I just shook my head and told him that those things were his to keep. Before I could leave, he was already reliving his days playing marbles. Nothing much? It was just a marble.

 

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[kingskid1611]

It was not the marble but the memories relived from a long time ago.....That is an awesome way to end a good hunt.....

 

[uglymailman]

Good Juju headed your way over that. Just an old marble to you maybe but to that old man it was a trip back in time. Good goin & good luck.

 

[coinman123]

It would be amazing to know the story about most of the things we find. To one person it is just an old marble, to others it is a snapshot of good times that have passed ages ago. That return was probably more meaningful than any silver dime you could find there.

 

[dirtlooter]

It would be amazing to know the story about most of the things we find. To one person it is just an old marble, to others it is a snapshot of good times that have passed ages ago. That return was probably more meaningful than any silver dime you could find there.

oh I knew the value of the marble, the statement was in reference to what was said that I would not find anything much of value there and yet I did. I figured that he would remember things long forgotten, things that were good memories, reminders of his youth. Too often we forget that the elderly were young at one time too, that they have stories to tell, very good stories that will be soon lost forever. I once knew a small elderly man that had been the postmaster at a very small town here in Arkansas. He didn't look like much but was a good honest man. After he died, I found out that the quiet little man had been highly decorated in WWII. He was the sole survivor on an island over run by the Japanese. You would have never known that he had ever been out of the county much less the country. The marble was the whole reason I went to see the man, I totally love to see and hear the joy pour out of someone as they remember times forgotten.

 

[Mzjavert]

I am beyond thrilled that you made that gentleman so happy.

 

[Coil-2-Soil]

Man,the story that went with the marble is truly amazing. Even with little monetary value that marble held great memories for a young boy who didn't have much. Thanks for sharing and happy Hunting.

 

[Loco-Digger]

Awesome read, Kudos to you for that kind gesture. One must not forget about emotional value.

 

[Mzjavert]

I have been thinking about this thread all day. It brought back some memories of my Grandparents. All grew up during the depression. My one Grandmother was extremely poor growing up. She often mentioned only having two sweaters in high school. She hated antiques because she viewed them as used furniture. Her twin siblings were buried in their yard. I was told because they were stillborn they could not get a death certificate. But I suspect that's what the kids were told. I strongly suspect that the family just could not afford the cost of a funeral, plot, and headstone.

I'm guessing this gentleman remembers exactly when he realized that he lost that marble. He probably spent some time looking for it. I hope his family appreciates how much this means to him. Hopefully they bury him with his childhood treasure.

If you would include pictures, I'll nominated this find for honorable mention.