Coe Review

grinned.
At the top, he stood for a moment in the darkness. There was one grimy
window at the far end of the attic. It let in enough light to illuminate the
dust in the air. Jasper knew there was a lonely light bulb somewhere, because
his mother refused to go into the attic if the light was out, and made Jasper's
father (on the rare occasions he was home) change it. In the dingy light, as
his eyes adjusted, Jasper saw the string which operated the light hanging in
the idle of the attic. Dragging a box over, he climbed up and pulled on the
string until he heard it click. When he released it ...
... he was in paradise.
Instead of the rows of sealed and labeled boxes he'd been expecting, he
saw piles, shelves, heaps of what could only be called junk. Bags of buttons,
a deer skull or two, ancient hunting gear, a violin with three strings snapped,
moth-eaten lacy dresses, a jar full of clothespins, four full-length mirrors,
yellowed newspapers, tarnished silverware, ribbons and trophies from some
parent's childhood. He didn't know where to begin. Some terribly mawkish
music wafted up the stairs, meaning his mother's soap opera was almost
over. He pocketed one of the bags of buttons and switched off the light.
All but sliding down the stairs, he closed the door and locked it, picking it
closed with his paperclip.
His mother found him in front of the door. "Jasper," she scolded, "you
know you're not allowed up there. No amount of staring is going to open
that door."
He allowed his shoulders to droop, and mustered up what he thought
was a beautifully petulant whine. "But, Mom ..."
"No, young man. You march yourself up to your room until dinner."
"Fine," Jasper huffed quite convincingly, and stomped down the hall to
his bedroom, where he spent not a few happy hours sifting through the bag
of buttons. He ate them with the patience and relish of a connoisseur. Later
that night, over a cup of sweet tea, his mother asked him if he was feeling
well—he hadn't eaten much at dinner. Jasper shrugged in response, and
wondered how the sugar tongs would taste.
16 Savory