Walking about a new favorite Antiques and Uniques store last Friday (where I was heard chanting “looking with our eyes, not with our hands” over and over and over):

Sara: Mommy, I notice whenever we come to Antique Malls, they are filled with really, really old people.

Mommy: Yep.  It’s the Octogenarians and us. We know how to party, don’t we?

Sara: Do you suppose they are here looking for something they lost?

Mommy: Uh-huh.  But it’s not the stuff they lost; they are looking for the memories associated with the antiques.

Sara: OH!  Like the Inward Eye in Anastasia Krupnik.

Mommy: Exactly. And even more important to us than the memories, are the lessons we learned while making the memories. Living your life and learning from it is called wisdom.

Sara: Like Wisdom Comes Suddenly!  Is that why you write it down? Are the stories about learning things?

Mommy: Sometimes.  And some are just for fun.  They are things I don’t want to forget.

Sara: Are you here trying to remember something?

Mommy: I’m not sure kiddo.  Maybe.  Maybe I just like rescuing treasures.  I see the beauty in things, even if they are covered in dust.

Sara: We’d better stop for some candy now.  I saw a vending machine up front.

Mommy: I hope they have some left.  Old people love candy!

Kelly: DID YOU SAY NO CANDY?!!  (insert Kelly-style I’ve-shopped-too-long meltdown…)

[postscript: we did find candy, which is payment for “looking with our eyes” at antique stores…and there were treasures uncovered…many, many treasures…more to come.]