Author Laura Shovan is hosting the “2016 Found Object Poem Project” this February. She has invited anyone interested to write a poem (or prose) each day in response to a photograph of a found object. Here is the first photograph:

And here is my response:

Wooden Box
Capable hands
held the potential of
raw, green wood,
inspired,
rejecting spoon, platter,
a plethora of options,
crafted a secret-holder,
a box for treasures,
dovetailing corners
fitting the lid precisely
sanding smooth the slivers
and splinters,
adhering paper
with written words
whispering on wood
a destination
that has faded into memory
with the accumulating
patina of time.

Inside the box
echoes of those hands
and unknown treasures,
past and present,
breathe,
stirring dusty molecules
and memories.