Several years ago, I moved from the house where my late husband and I had raised our three children—two girls and a boy. It had three bedrooms so that meant the two girls shared a room in our suburban home. My husband died young of colon cancer at the age of fifty-two. Thus, unfortunately, he did not live long enough to hear the cheerful noise of grandchildren filling the rooms of this same house as they enjoyed special times with me which we called “Nonny Days.”

While I was still in the process of moving out, my son and one of his teen boys went to the house to do a bit of maintenance for me. Later my son told me about the emotions he witnessed in his own son, my grandson, as they went through the uninhabited homestead.

I wrote the following poem about the Nuggets of Gold the teen boy finds in the recesses of his mind as he processes his grief. He had spent numerous days exploring life and learning under the guidance of his now deceased grandmother—the one he affectionately calls “Nonny.”   

NUGGETS OF GOLD
by Connie Carlisle Polley

We walked into her house,
Her cupboard—already bare.
Someone had come and cleaned it out
Since Nonny was no longer there.

I turned to carry my bag down
To the bedroom I always loved.
A spider had spun a dainty lace
Which brushed my cheek from above.

“Where is Nonny?” I whispered,
Although the answer I knew.
“She’s gone!” the walls seemed to scream
But my heart won’t believe it’s true.

Mem’ries of days spent with Nonny
Flooded me head to toe.
The lessons, the play times—they linger
Inside me like nuggets of gold.

So, when I can’t help but be sad
I’ll pull out this glittering gold;
And lifting it up to the heavens
I’ll see angels’ sweet message unfold.

With billowing clouds, they inscribe letters
In a language to me unknown.
But somehow my heart knows the meaning:
“Nonny’s worshipping God on His throne.”

Nonny, I’ll never forget you—
Learning and laughing together.
But whatever days ahead may bring me
I’ll love you forever and ever.

Discovering Nuggets of Gold
Connie Carlisle Polley, 2025
ConnieCarlislePolley.com
NonnyDay.com

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