It’s never easy losing something, whether it be an old blanket, a stuffed animal or a lucky tie. Losing something that has sentimental meaning sometimes feels like losing a piece of yourself.
But what if you had the chance to do that day all over again? The day you lost your favorite skateboard or the necklace your mom gave you for graduation. Imagine you could go back. What would be the thing you wish you never lost?
APN staff tells you their most memorable items that they wish they still had today.
Heart-Shaped Necklace
Kaylee Adams
Staff Writer
My great-aunt died very unexpectedly the year before I graduated high school. I was incredibly close to her. She even lived with me for a period of time.
A few days before my graduation, my mother gave me a necklace with a heart-shaped pendant that had “you are my sunshine” printed on the front. My aunt would sing this song to me as a child, and just a couple weeks before she died, we planned to have it tattooed on us. On the back of the necklace was a picture of my aunt and me engraved in the silver. The pendant also held some of my aunt’s ashes in it.
I had worn it everyday for about a year when the chain had broke and I managed to catch the pendant. I put the pendant in my pocket to put away later. Sometime during that day the pendant fell out of my pocket. Between my house and the places I went that day, I have no clue when it could have fell out. Maybe one day it will pop up somewhere.
The Stray Harmonica
Michael DeCoste
Staff Writer
If there was one possession I wish I still had, it would be my harmonica. I can’t even remember the brand, but it was small enough to fit in my hand. The instrument was set in the key of “C” with about 12 holes.
It wasn’t one of those cheap plastic things you’d find in a dollar store; I’m surprised I was able to get even the faintest musical squeak out of those things. This was a pristine harmonica made for music.
To me, it was one of the only instruments one could self-teach how to make music from, at least if the player had no intention of playing in a band. All one needed to know was proper breathing, lip pursing and lip placement.
Harmonicas make different notes whether the player is blowing air out or sucking air in, hence, the need for proper breathing. Lip pursing comes from knowing when to breathe through either one blow hole or several at a time, which can create other notes. Also, as each blow hole makes a different pitched note, knowing where to place your lips on a harmonica is as vital as a finger placement on a flute.
I didn’t ever play actual songs with the harmonica but the way it sounded and how one worked such an instrument gave me an imaginative interest in the music it could make. I may have listened to the instructional DVD that came with it at one point, but, like I said, I wasn’t interested in playing music for an audience.
I wish I knew where the harmonica was. For all I know, it could be in our attic or I could have left it at a relative’s house. I might get a new one at some point, but I doubt I’ll stop missing the harmonica I used to play any time soon.
Pink Purse
Sophia DeVito
Staff Writer
Someone that I lost that I wish I still had would be my purse.
In July of 2016, I went to New Jersey with my family and friends. We spent a week enjoying the beach and the warm weather that July brings. It was a week filled with laughter and memories.
One of the memories I will never forget is the night I left my bag on the side of the road in Wildwood. My friends and I had been sitting on the curb, waiting for our ride to come pick us up. When we got into the car I had assumed my bag was still on my shoulder and didn’t think twice about checking for it. I was very wrong.
When we got back to our condo, 30 minutes away, I realized that my bag was not with me. I went into a state of sheer panic. I couldn’t believe that I had done something so stupid. My baby pink cross-body bag was left on the side of the road in Wildwood, New Jersey, and I knew I wasn’t getting it back.
Inside contained my brand new Michael Kors wallet, with all of my credit cards, gift cards and $300 cash that I stupidly brought out with me. Half of my makeup was in that bag, along with sunglasses that I loved. I had to quickly cancel my credit cards on the phone as we drove back to where I had been sitting. I knew it wouldn’t be there after an hour but we tried anyway. I cried and cried until I couldn’t cry anymore. That was definitely an experience that I will never forget and I am now more careful when I carry around a bag.
I wish I had never lost it but in some ways it taught me a good lesson.
Childhood Blanket
John Peralta
Multimedia Editor
I’ll never forget the day I lost my prized blanket at the age of five.
It was a hot summer day and my family and I were going to a family BBQ and as usual, my mother complained about the blanket.
Just to give you some background, this was the greatest blanket of all time. It wasn’t a giant blanket but it was small enough to carry all over the place. It had prints of animated bulldogs all over the place. Between the spaces of dogs was a beautiful ocean blue that made me fall in love with the color blue.
Anywhere I went, that blanket came with me. Whether it was to the bathroom, school, games, or park, that blanket was with me at all times. My mother grew more and more frustrated the more times I brought that blanket out with me. She had a plan: take my blanket while I sleep and pretend like I lost it. That’s exactly what she did.
After the BBQ, I was asleep on the ride home and soon enough my mother took the blanket and tossed it away. In my five years of life, I’ve never felt so hurt in my life. It was a sad, sad day for my 5-year-old self.
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