In my childhood bedroom, at the foot of my bed, there was a low bookshelf. The top of the bookshelf was where I kept coin-can, my trophies, and my two round rocks.

Both rocks were about the size of a big orange, or a softball (are those the same size?). The one my grandfather found one day when I was six or seven, was almost perfectly round, and dark gray. It was kind of a lucky charm to me, although I don’t know why. I think it was just because it was so close to perfect. It was so smooth and symmetrical that it was probably a piece of natural clay that somebody shaped into a ball and then abandoned, only to be found days, months, decades later. The other one was light brown in color, rougher in texture, and more oblong. I found that one myself out on a walk with my mom, but I don’t recall where. The two were so well paired that that made a nice set of bookends for years. 

I’m not sure where the dark gray one ended up, but the light brown one I still sits on the shelf near my desk tonight.

I’m interested if any of you want to share childhood possessions that have made it this far with you in comments.