I stared through the window of the storage room next to an antique shop in Old St. Charles, Missouri.

The items were "not quite good enough" to make it into the main parlor. I have a feeling that the original owners may have felt differently. Years ago these "2nd rate" items adorned the living rooms, bedrooms and kitchens of homes...homes of real people. Lamps with stained shades and frayed wires once lit a small living room...the owners so proud of the new electric service just installed. Wooden folding chairs that were brought out of the closet for the small ones to sit on at Thanksgiving gatherings or wakes for loved ones who had passed. Odd to us today but the copper pineapple on the table made visitors feel welcomed upon entering a home.

The potbellied stove kept a family warm on cold Winter nights...this stove served it's family well, now cast aside. The hand carved hawk...not the best handiwork but a labor of love probably made of wood native to the farm where it was proudly displayed. The handmade wooden box next to the stove was in bad repair but due to the hand cut dovetail joints...it still was capable of holding the tools that made it. And last but surely not the least of the items...the timeworn table in the foreground still sturdy after years of meals, family discussions and neighborly gatherings continues to be useful even today.

There is a great article by an Author named Jackie Curtis...I know nothing of her but her article relays so well my feelings about this room...I stumbled onto the article by accident. From now on...when I go to an Antique Store...the first question I am going to ask is "Can I look at your articles in the storage room"?

Dan