finding something - quotes and descriptions to inspire creative writing

The most ordinary of objects held fascination for Clara. As with the people in her life, she found immense joy in the humble splendours most raced past in their search for something more "shiny."

Upon the wet rain-washed cement of the old pathway near the church is a small puzzle piece. It shows an image of the sky with a little puffed cloud, brilliant white in the sunshine. Although I see the cardboard already soaking in the water and curling upward at the very edge, I imagine it is a piece of the real sky that has fallen to Earth. I pick it up and hold it high, seeing how it is a perfect match for the blue and white above. I guess some puzzles really are that simple and one piece is enough.

The mirror was small and cheap, about the size of the cell phones all the up-town kids were carrying. It was the kind you see in a dollar store thickly rimmed in white plastic, the kind that's in landfill not even a month later. The shiny surface was covered in greasy fingerprints and there was a lipstick smear. Jared stuck it in his pocket anyway, tacky though it was it could be useful in a pinch - a flash of light at the right time from the right place could make all the difference.

The old painting leans against the wall, dusty and unloved. Petra runs a finger along the gold framing, her pink nail polish almost purple in the half-light, and it comes away dirty. In the grime that must have taken years to form there is now a streak of gold. She holds it up. With the light that struggles to make it through the grime on the window the colours are subdued, but she can already tell it's a country scene. The hills roll green, interwoven with the golds of autumn. How it could have lain here in the dark for so long without her knowing? She moves slowly down the attic stairs, one hand on the rungs, one on the painting. It's time for it to have pride of place...

Reed less found objects than discovered them. He had a way of seeing their beauty in a way others needed revealing to them. So he restored them with love, care and patience until we all saw what he did and fell in love too.