tavie.com

I've taken off the Tour of Duty dogtags for the first time in almost a year.

Wot made you do it, guv'nah, you might be askin'?

When I was seven, I was given a piece of jewelry by a boy. It was the first time a boy ever gave me such a romantic gift. (The boy was Adam, brother of these two, who was at that time married to me as per a ceremony that we held daily when we were in kindy-garten.) It was a faceted red jewel in the shape of a heart, on a silver chain. Ooh, Kirsten was so jealous. I thought this the most beautiful treasure in the world and wore it often. Both the necklace and the memory of it were eventually lost, but I remembered it last night.

Wot made your be remembrin' it, guv'nah, you might be askin'?

Me mum is occasionally given gifts by little old landladies whom she counsels as part of her job at the Housing Department. She's allowed to keep the gifts if they're worth under a certain amount of money. Last night she brought home a necklace, identical to the one Adam gave me long ago. (She didn't remember that one; she brought it home because ruby is our birthstone and she thought we'd like it. Since it's certainly not an actual ruby, I think this is kosher.)

So the dogtags are now hanging on a key ring on the zipper of my purse, and a heart around my throat as a rememberance of my earliest (and virtually sole) experience with romance.

Why are you in Tavie's head? 4:55 PM | shower me with attention