Friday, July 18, 2008

Good Luck Charms and Memories

There is an antique copy of J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan and Wendy that resides on a table in my bedroom. It is green cloth with gold lettering and it is filled, three or four to a page, with four-leaf clovers. Inexplicably, and through no fault of my own, I have always been able to easily find four-leaf clovers. Without trying. I just look down, or over, or yon, and there is one looking back at me. This happens when I’m lolling about my back garden, it happens when I’m visiting someone else’s back garden, when I’m just strolling along or when I’m running with Edward. I just seem to glance to the side and, voila, a four-leaf clover. I stop, pluck it, put it in my pocket, and later place it with the others in my green book. I have done this for many years, and now the book is stuffed with these little symbols of green good luck. Growing up, I never considered this to be an unusual thing but later others began to tell me that it was, indeed, not exactly the norm.

Once, whilst visiting my husband’s uncle, this little peculiarity of mine became a bit of a problem. Uncle Rob was well into his nineties and had always lived on the same piece of daffodil covered land in a quirky little rock house that he had built himself. Most of the world’s so-called progress had eluded him and he quite preferred it that way. His ideas were old ones and he remained a contented part of an earlier mindset and a simpler time. On this particular sunny afternoon, my husband and I were up in Uncle Rob’s back garden having a visit. While the gentlemen conversed I was sort of daydreaming and gazing around. Sure enough, I looked down and spied, per usual, a four-leaf clover. I picked it and handed it over to Uncle Rob. He was delighted. “Would you look at that! That’s a lucky girl!” Well, they continued to talk and, once again, I looked to the side and... you guessed it. When I handed this one to the old man, his reaction was a bit more muted, still excited but... I thought he might have looked at me, well, a little funny, but figured it was just the light or my imagination. Well, by the time I handed over the fifth one, my husband was vigorously shaking his head at me from behind his uncle, and Uncle Rob was most certainly looking at me differently than anyone had ever looked at me before. A sidelong narrow-eyed stare, as if he’d heard about people like me in his time, but had never before seen one in the flesh.
I think from that day on, he was never exactly certain whether or not I was capable of turning him into a badger, and he wasn’t about to find out.

Uncle Rob has been gone several years now and we all miss him. A few days ago, I stopped in front of what used to be his homeplace. There are luxury condos there now. No leafy trees, no daffodils, no four-leaf clovers. Yet, I can close my eyes and see them all clearly. I am grateful for that. Just as I am grateful for my Peter Pan book full of
good luck charms and memories.

23 comments:

  1. I like that Blue Tower of Babel ... especially since its not working as Holly would like .. its supposed to link back to the various posts those tags are from BUT she is working on it .. and I am keeping your entry ...

    :-Daryl

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  2. A lovely post ... and Winnie and I are very excited to finally meet Miss Apple. xo S.

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  3. Lucky lucky girl! May the luck o' the Irish always be with you, to find and to keep all your lucky charms.

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  4. I have fond memories of sitting for hours in a cool, shady spot of clover, searching for the lucky four leaf.

    As always, a lovely post, Pamela!

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  5. Pamela, you've graced all of us with your lovely writing, as always! I so look forward to reading your wonderful posts...I am "green" with envy..tee hee...by your wonderful ability to spot a 4 leaf clover...What a unique and glorious gift to have!

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  6. Pamela,
    I read your comment on my dear friend Marion's blog...Marion and I met through blogging almost two years ago....she and her husband spent 12 days with us in May. I saw where Elizabeth Pointe is a link on your web page. We have gone to Amelia Island for 48 years and are very familiar with the island.... after visiting Savannah we went to Amelia Island... Marion and I walked on the beach while staying there....she probably doesn't remember Elizabeth Pointe condo but thought it is so interesting that we walked that strip of beach..we were staying at a condo nearby that we've used for several years....

    The Blue Willow Restaurant is one of our favorites and we wanted to share it with Marion and John...our daughter lives in Madison so we visit that area frequently.....

    Marion and I are blogging about their visit...each from our own perspective.....

    Betty @ Country Charm

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  7. A beautiful story Pamela. Just delightful. It makes sense to me completely.

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  8. All my life I have searched for a four leaf clover and never found one! You are indeed a charmed person Pamela!

    The old illustration of Peter Pan is so wonderful!

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  9. I would love to find a four leaf clover. Lucky you! Sad to hear Uncle Rob's old home has been modernized with so little thought for the beautiful trees and daffodils; or the four leaf clovers! Not a good omen! ;)

    PS.Zipper sends greetings to Edward...and hopes he has a pleasant day!

    ~Kalianne

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  10. Thanks for visitng my blog, and the kind comments.

    and thank YOU for the C.S Lewis quote about man and dog - I had never heard that before, and I was a librarian!

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  11. Beautiful story which you should write and have a book published - "Lucky me!" I too find 4 leaf clovers, and other things of luck, like the wish-bone, the lucky horse-shoe and I was also born on St.Patrick's' day!
    Perhaps your stories would be chronicles of luck from the House of Edward.
    Lucky me to read your post.

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  12. Edward's smile melts my heart! You are very lucky, as is he. I enjoyed reading his story. Thank you for visiting my blog. I will enjoy visits to yours as well.

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  13. You are just blessed with an eye that sees. Maybe there would be more four-leaf clovers for all of us is we took the time to just look. Wonderful posting.

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  14. I've only ever found one in my entire life, amazing.

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  15. Such excitement knowing you have an amazingly rare talent - I look for hours and never find one!

    Loved the vision of your husband's somewhat eccentric uncle (perhaps a little anyway!) your lovely story conjured up. Don't you despise condos covering former meadows and fields filled with wildflowers and trees? I hate what developers do to the land!!!!

    Thanks for stopping by Pamela - I have to agree the flocked damask is not quite at the top of my list - just give me rich fabrics or, if on wall coverings, flat finished patterns in beautiful aged/washed colors.

    Woof to Edward.

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  16. Thanks for stopping by my blog; I've been wandering yours for a bit today. I like the pictures! (Yes, I am literate, but I still buy children's picture books for use at work and to keep at home for the children of family and friends.)

    I can't comment much on four-leaf clovers. My brother was always finding them, though. Lucky little booger.

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  17. i have two four leaf clovers that i found years ago, i bloogged about them last year :-)

    Leanne x

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  18. I love this account. The end is a bit sad, reading of condos being in the spot where the old stone house was, but that's progress. Uncle Rob wasn't able to outrun it in the end.

    I've never found a four-leaf clover.

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  19. I had to laugh about your husband shaking his head from behind his uncle's back. Great story.

    I've only found a four leafer once. And life has been pretty good but of course, I can't turn even a toad into a badger.

    Lucky girl

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  20. Your Peter Pan book with four leaf clovers pressed between the pages sounds wonderful! How lucky that you are able to find them so easily!

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  21. The only four-leafed clover I ever found was in a wood in Greece. It was at the beginning of one of the most difficult, often unhappy, but finally transformative years of my life. Oddly, in the middle of that time, when someone remarked that it hadn't brought me much luck and I perhaps ought to give it away, I was quite surprised, somehow it still seemed to me to be a charmed and special thing I was lucky to find!

    What an extraordinarly gift you have though!

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  22. Wow - I'm still waiting to find my 4 leaf clover. You've made me more optimistic it might happen someday! Michele

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  23. Hi Pamela,
    Thanks for your kind words on my blog! I have been enjoying perusing yours, & had to comment on this post. My sister too is a clover-finder. She claims that she was given the gift, as a very small child, by a friend of my mother's who was also able to find them everywhere. I've always been enthralled by the talent. I have found many over the years, but definitely can't find them at will as you & my sister can.

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I love to read your comments! Each and every one! Though I'm always reading your comments, I may not respond in the comment section. If you want to write me directly, you may do so at pamela@pamelaterry.net. Thank you for reading!