Stories Collected While Living in France
The key of happiness is in your breast pocket, next to your heart. You will find it can open many doors, and lock those that need to be closed. If you use it often, it will become larger. Funny, when happiness is at hand, the doors disappear, and the key is passed on. Here is one on a silver tray.
Photo: Large 19th century key waits to be held. It opens the sturdiest door! Looking back at this photo…I hear my inner voice saying, "Why didn’t you ask the price of that tray!?"
Thanks for sharing your key to happiness.
Your friendship unlocks joy and Joie de Vivre for us all.
Oooh La La!
Love you
Jeanne
the key is happiness for sure!
I wonder what doors that old key has opened? What glorious cocktails have been served on that tray?
Keys are one of those small items that seem so symbolic – of secrets, dreams, places you’ve been or have yet to go.
Lots of collage artists use keys in their work.
To Anonymouse:
Come out of hiding
Show your face-
You’re leaving poems
All over the place!
You’re really funny
And quite a tease!
Do you have your own blog?
Please?!
I used to collect old keys like that but I didn’t have anyplace to put it. I don’t even know what happened to them. I hope they are giving someone else happiness.
Oh I have done this before, I concentrate on taking pictures and forget to buy the items 🙂 sharing with blog friends comes first -now looking at my photos from Noordermarkt Amsterdam wishing I had purchased some beautiful fabrics.
Good post, Corey. I like trays like that one, too. I once had a dream in which I took trays like that one and ones that read Happy 25th Anniversary, etc., on them, and hung them floor-to-ceiling in a cafe. The name of the cafe: Anniversary. We served lemon cake and cupcakes covered with pink icing – yum!
I like your metaphore. Six old keys (cousins to the one in your photo) hang on the wall in our living room. They now possess new meaning. One of my prized possesions: a heart shapped lock and key from Paris. (also hanging on wall)
What you wrote is so so true 🙂 My key is a bit battered, but it serves me well when I need it.
You’re right that the doors disappear when happiness takes up residence in your heart.
I love this picture and hadn’t really thought about keys for quite awhile, but darla is right, they represent so many things. Just the thing to prompt a journal entry I think…
Happy weekend, Corey!
I love this picture — so simple and pure. I use keys in my work often — probably because I’m at a point in my life where I want to open every single door I possibly can!
Another beauty, small and quite to the point! Thank you!
I have an Italian tile purchased at a thrift shop years ago. It is framed and (per translation) “Courtesy is the golden key that opens every door”. How true and Corey your photo is great!
Keys are amazing things- they bring back a lot of memories…
Thanks, Corey…
hah. good thoughts all the way around – from the sublime to the mundane. LOL
Thank you for the constant inspiration and for the invitation to look within, Corey!
The right key can strengthen
our lives the challenge…
which key to have in our hand.
Two friends and I once found a key right where we were sitting in the grass talking of celestial things so we agreed to pass it round when we needed good luck. In the end it got “stuck” with one person who said she lost it, then it turned out she wanted to keep it for herself so she got more luck than us! Silly girl, Ha! I’d forgotten about that. x
So Corey, does that mean that you are passing it on? I’ll take it then. Thank you!
xoxo
MM
yes! 🙂
Unlock your heart and mind and be open to happiness.
At times it may feel safer to keep them locked, but Oh! the opportunties we miss.
I hate remembering all those wonderful purchases passed up. Nice post.
So simple and so lovely!!
I have an obsession with keys. 5 years ago I went to a garage sale at this very old “garage” where a man used to do strange repair things. He had a huge container, I mean huge, of keys, i had to have them. I ask ed for the price. $1.00 (US dollars) Can you belive it, of course they were mine. Now, I refuse to part with any of them.
I dreamed I had lost a key and was looking for it. When I found it, it looked exactly like this one.
🙂
I was kind of hoping it opened the cellar…
It’s all about being open isn’t it…open to what the universe sends you and not locking yourself away for protection, like the best china that never gets used.
The key of happiness on a silver tray ! The picture first and your post at large symbolize your kindness to your readers and in life.
In French “apporter quelque chose à quelqu’un sur un plateau d’argent” (=to bring something to someone on a silver tray”)means you offer something to someone before he/she starts anything… (making things easy for him/her)
Thank you for caring for us ! So so kind of you!
– to FrenchHusband now:
Chocolates or clementines,
Any thing would do
for your valentine,
were it presented by you
on this silver tray…
Her key to happiness, I say !
Despite scaling down our belongings to almost nothing when we moved to France, I just found a ring full of keys…none as lovely as this one…but keys just the same. What did they open? I don’t remember. All those doors, now locked forever. I guess I’d better hang onto them…just in case.
Meilleurs voeux!!
This key reminds me of one I used to wear on a ribbon round my neck…a reminder that I hold the key to my own happiness.
Beautiful photos. Thanks for taking us on journey.
gautami
On another shopping spree…
This time you bought a key.
But you forgot the tray.
Don’t worry.
It will be there another day
At the flea.
Corey, what a beautiful analogy! I love the when you possess happiness, the doors disappear and the key gets passed onto th enext one. Beautiful!! Won’t you please consider making/taking that into a childrens’ story?!
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