Update: My friend's comment about pottery shards made me see my own yard differently

I was having a beer with my buddy Dave, who works for the state historical society. I was complaining about how I keep hitting rocks and bits of old brick when I dig fence post holes. He just shrugged and said, 'You know, for us, that's not trash, that's a story. Every broken plate or tool handle is a receipt from the past.' That hit different because I'd always just chucked that stuff in the wheelbarrow. He told me about a site near Albany where they found a single layer of charcoal and nails that pinpointed a barn fire from 1842. Now I've got a bucket by my shed for any weird bits I find, and I actually look at them. Has anyone else had a moment like that, where you stopped seeing something as junk and started seeing it as a clue?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_simon1mo ago

Oh man, I used to toss old nails too! Now I've got a jar of 'rusty mysteries' on my windowsill.

bennett.nora1mo ago

My yard is for my garden, not a museum.

the_mary1mo ago

Totally, my garden is FULL of weird little finds from the dirt.