Playing marbles for keepsies...

While supervising on the elementary playground, back in the day, for this is no more, children were happy to play with marbles. Marbles all had special names...It was an energized and creative time before electronics...

Craters, Rainbow Swirls and other Exotic Marbles

The frost had left the ground

the school yard transformed

to a cratered lunar like surface

as happy kids with numb fingers

squinted and took aim in

winner takes all games of:

Eye Drops,

Potsies,

Hitsies,

Snap-Crackle-Pop

or

Blanksies

A vocabulary for size:

Croak, supersize,

jumbo, bolder,

peewee and mini

and one for appearance:

Fogs, Specks, Cat’s Eyes, Sharks, Oilies,

Horsetails, Steelies, Ghost Galaxies,

Red Devils, Onions, Bloody Mary’s, Rainbows,

Skunks, Jewel Crowns, Crystals, Frosties, Spies,

Blueberry, Black Knights, Chestnuts, Galpears and

...never ever forget the lonely,

Plainie.

Few things on the yard match the excitement of

a mass marble sramble, or the eagerness in the eyes

of a potsie winner proudly clutching

a Royal Crown bag full of marbles.

Some days I would give a jumbo rainbow-swirl

to be ten again.

(previously published by the ATA)