Nails: A Magpie Tale

Willow over at Life at Willow Manor  has come up with a new photo prompt for bloggers on a site called Magpie Tales.  She'll be posting a photo weekly as a prompt for a fictional account or poem telling of its history and/or how the item in the photo came to be in your possession.  This week's prompt is....

Nails

It was an old fashioned country hardware store... straight out of the early 20th century.  Wooden floors creaked as we moved down the aisles.  Schoolhouse lights dropped on long chains from the pressed tin ceiling.  A small rake rested in the bins of nails which were weighed in a white enamel bowl dangling from a scale. 

The counter was also made of wood... polished to a satiny glow.  A roll of brown paper was attached to one end of the counter for wrapping up packages.  At the other end was an old brass cash register. 

But the thing that drew us to the hardware store was under the counter... encased in glass.  It was the penny candy, which old Mr. Harding kept for the children of his customers.  Gum drops, peppermints, Mary Jane, butterscotch, Bit o' Honey, Neapolitan coconut candies and salt water taffy.  That's what made a trip to the hardware store special.

So whenever dad said he needed to pick up a few nails, we'd all rush to pile into the back seat of the car for the three mile drive into town.  Mom didn't really want us eating candy but dad had a sweet tooth and we were happy to be his partners in crime.

Off we'd go, each coming away with a small paper wrapper filled with candies.  Heaven for a child of the 50's.  Mom would just roll her eyes when she'd see us rolling back down the driveway.

Funny thing is... it wasn't often that we actually picked up any nails.  Go figure.

Please be sure to stop over at Magpie Tales to check out the other people creating a tale this week. You'll be glad you did!