Domino

Cheater’s Monopoly, Scrabble, Never Ever That Awful Game Cribbage, Poker, and the list goes on. Over the years, I’ve spent lots of time playing games with friends. One couple I was friends with did not think a Saturday night was complete with an hour or two of Mille Bourne. I went along for the ride.
Then there were the years of courtship with my darling wife. Frankly, we were both broke and rarely had money to do much except be in each other’s company. On a day trip, we found a store with Domino sets for sale at a dollar a box. We picked up a couple and went home to play Domino’s. That winter, while it stormed outside, we played Domino’s. We fantasized about doing more exciting things. But we were content with each other’s company, a cat, and the boxes of Dominoes.
The Dominos eventually became a kids’ favorite toy. We bought additional sets, and the Domino box houses an impressive set. Once, the kids made an elaborate domino cascade arrangement stretching from the boy’s room into the girl’s. The cat started it somewhere near the middle before they could set off the Domino cascade. And it proceeded towards both ends, capping several hours of construction with pleasure for the cat and frustration for the kids.

It’s good to be a donor to causes. Last year, I was going through the huge accumulation of games we had gathered through the years. I winnowed it down to one box of “keepers,” and the rest went into the donations. The game box is mainly for winter nights when the family needs something to do as a group, and thankfully, nothing is on the TV that just must be watched. But off to the side, I placed the box of dominos, not in the game box, but in their special place where my wife and I can see them as we go in and out—a reminder of those nights spent together long ago.