Angie's Gumball Machine

After my sister Angie died my other three sisters, LaVonn, Marilyn, and Nancy, worked tirelessly cleaning out her house.  Because of Covid I wasn't able to go....but they were willing to retrieve a few things for me.  

Photo taken at Angie's house.

One of my requests was this yellow gumball machine.....I always admired it. There was something about the unexpected and happy yellow color.....and the fact that it was filled with marbles that drew me in.  It was soooo Angie.

Nancy sent the marbles in a birthday box a few years ago and took the gumball machine home to Minneapolis to hold for me. She brought it with her to Wisconsin so it was my carry on during my trip home. It was bigger than I remembered...so was a bit of a challenge.

It's now in my dining room on Connie's cabinet. If Angie can have a gumball machine in her living room....I can have one in my dining room.  The arrangement will evolve.....and I'll smile and think of Angie every time I walk by.

I do think it needs a few more marbles.  

When I stayed with Angie when she first became quite ill I was taking the Conscious Creativity class from Philippa Stanton (5ftinf).  The lesson one of the weeks was looking for mood and atmosphere around us....and this photo was one of my class submissions.  

Angie would park her wheelchair in front of the bathroom door while she got ready for bed.  There was something about the single light in the hallway illuminating the empty chair that gave me chills.   

Do you see the gumball machine on the shelf? The whimsical yellow machine took on a whole different feel in the dark....and this setting.

And one final story.  When I was walking from one end of terminal A to the other in Detroit for my connecting flight home I had the gumball machine in a bag slung over my shoulder.  It was awkward and uncomfortable....but I knew it was worth it.  

All of a sudden I walked by a bigger than human size gumball machine and it made me stop in my tracks. Seriously.....it was 6 or 7 feet tall....and it gave me a little bounce in my step for the rest of my walk.

Coincidence?  I think not.