An Elephant Childhood Memory

It's really funny what odd little bits and pieces of the past linger with us over the years. One of my memories from my grandmother's home in Chicago is of a little china creamer. I can see it in my head as if I had used it just yesterday. It was a squat little pitcher, with a short trunk as a pouring spout and the tail became the handle. His bulging sides became the bowl of the creamer, and I remember that the details of his head were outlined in pastel pinks and blues.

It wouldn't do for Grandmother to pour milk into my glass from the milk bottle. No, she would put the milk in the little pitcher, and I would oh so happily pour the milk into my glass or on my cereal through that wonderful spout. I even remember just drinking straight from the elephant's trunk. Why it turned ordinary milk into such a treat, only a child could completely understand. But it was special to me, turning the mundane into magic.

Grandmother and Granddaddy moved from Chicago to Birmingham, where we lived, when I was 14. I was busy adjusting to High School, and, for the time being, relics of my childhood were not on my mind. So, there are several things from their Chicago home that were left behind that I wish now I had had the good sense to ask for. That little elephant would be at the top of my list.

I've looked at many little elephant pitchers at Estate Sales, hoping to one day find MY elephant, but so far I've been disappointed by each one. What made him different from others I've seen is hard to put into words, but I know I'll recognize this childhood friend of mine when I see him.