Treasure Hunt

     Howard Carter worked in Egypt for 31 years before
he discovered King Tut's tomb!
     My own great uncle Charley spent years hand digging
a mine on Alaska's Kenai Peninsula in a search for gold!
     If only my wife, daughter, and grand kids could have
been with them. They can find 'treasures' in minutes!
     We had just left one of my favorite restaurants in
the town of Tamaqua when someone in our group
spotted the nearby "General Store."  It wasn't the kind
of market that would have supplied my uncle's need for
picks and shovels or flower and bacon. But it did have
a wide variety of merchandise.
     A few 'choice' items were actually on display right
outside the entrance in the hope customers would
check those then move inside to find more. And it
worked.
     The coloring books, five for a dollar, immediately
caught my wife's attention. Lest you think living with
me for 42 years requires coloring as therapy...the books
will actually be used as part of our church project to
fill shoe boxes with goodies for kids in third world
countries at Christmas.
      It was my grandson who first saw the real
'treasure' though. It was a 'mouthpiece.' No, I'm
not talking about a do-it-yourself lawyer kit. This
was a genuine mouth guard. The kind of thing you
might use if you're playing football. My grandson
doesn't play football....yet. But he is involved with
BMX Bike racing. So, he now has a 'mouthpiece'
for whatever protection it affords.
    Foolishly believing our shopping exploration
had ended I started for home.
    I might have made it had the rest of the
entourage not pointed out that the people running
the yard sale we passed on the way to dinner
were still there and seemed to be packing up
their remaining goods. That, they observed, was
the best time to find bargains!
     In no time at all the sellers slowed their
packing so my crew could dig in and see what
there was to be had.
     My daughter found clothes, including some
that were brand new and never worn for a buck
or two.
    My grand daughter discovered a toy duck
that quacks when you touch its tongue.
    My wife found a colorful bird house for
just fifty cents and, since we only have a
half dozen or so already ,I came up with the
cash.
    My grandson, with newly acquired mouth
guard still held tight between his teeth came up
with a small electronic keyboard which, he
tells me, only needs batteries.
    Me? I didn't get anything this time around.
    Why buy for myself when my birthday
is just a week away?
    I'm only hoping I don't get a mouthpiece
this year!
    Hope you've all found your treasures
and that all your NEWS is good!