1950's Charms from Vending Machines     (Collected in Glen Oaks, Queens, NYC) Collecting Charms Four-leaf clovers are scarce, but the plastic ones in horseshoe from vending machines are common that nobody wants them in trade. Whistle, elephant, racecar charms, compass pointing to the true north, alphabet letters in demand if they bear your name initials. But scarciest charm is the light bulb that glows in the dark, few have got. There's a weekly ritual in Glen Oaks— unwanted charms are thrown away up in the air, and those who catch them are the new keepers. Susan has an extra light bulb she's parting with, and a big crowd gathered around her— I stayed back, having been told she'd toss it in the grass so it won't crack hitting the sidewalk— that's how I received my first light bulb, placed under my pillow— glowing in the dark. 64 years have flown by since that event, and now I realized she loved me— tapping my bottlecap gently in Skully, not blasting me away, sharing the secret pathway to backyard via storage bin tunnel. Her older sister Gloria was more popular with the boys, but to me Susan's prettier with short curly brown hair and dark soulful eyes. Don't know where those charms went— but the charming girl gone— priceless! She's fresh in my memory lanes— a treasure from the river of life.     — Peter Y. Chou         Mountain View, 3-21-2021