The Case of the Missing Earring – autobiographical
Why is it that you never lose a pair of earrings? It’s always one! Friday 2 March 2012 came and I was due to go to my writing group. I wanted to put on my favourite earrings; a pair of tiny dropped opal earrings, set in gold. I went to my bedside cabinet, where there is a small tray. As I go to bed I take off my earrings and place them in the tray, but when I looked, to my horror, there was only one earring.
I looked on the floor and then went on my hands and knees and felt the soft tufts of carpet hoping to find the minute piece of metal and stone. Then I grappled under the bed, pulling out bags and suitcases and felt along those surfaces. Time was running out. If I wanted to be on time I would have to leave soon.
I stripped the bed back and shook the bed clothes out, but no luck. After all these years of wearing those precious earrings one of them had gone walkabout. Of course they are not valuable in the monetary sense; they were special because my husband had bought them almost twenty years ago and I knew he had put a lot of time and effort in to choose something I liked.
It was a mystery how I could go to bed and place the earrings in the tray and one just jump out and run away, however I needed to leave and so I decided to put on my wedding earrings. They are gold circles that tumble together, much bigger than my favourite ones and a bit more dressy. They also have sentimental value but I wasn’t really in the mood to wear them.
Walking down the stairs I placed the left earring in my ear and tried to place the right one. I just couldn’t manage it whilst walking. There was no use rushing. I stopped in front of the mirror to put the right wedding earring in and then I had to laugh because there in my right ear was the other of my favourite earrings. Happily I ran back upstairs to get the one by my bed. Last night I must have taken one earring out and fallen asleep before taking out the other one. Well I thought – that’s old age for you!
pennyluker 