Daily writing prompt

What’s the best thing you’ve ever found randomly on the street?

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I did find a Buck knife once. I still have it. In fact, I used it to open a package the other day.

So, naturally, that should be the answer to this question. Except I didn’t find it on the street. I have absolutely no idea where I found it.

That probably says something about how memorable the discovery was. Apparently, at some point in my life, I came across a perfectly good Buck knife, decided it was worth keeping, and then failed to preserve even the slightest detail about how it came into my possession.

Still, that’s about as close as I can get.

I don’t really wander the streets of Jacksonville looking for random discarded objects that might secretly be worth something. I’m not out there inspecting curbside sofas for hidden treasure, digging through mystery boxes beside the road, or slowing down every time somebody puts a dresser next to a trash can.

Maybe I’m missing out.

Perhaps somewhere in Jacksonville right now there is an antique worth $12,000 sitting next to a handwritten FREE sign, waiting for somebody with better instincts than mine.

I will drive right past it. Mostly because when I see something sitting beside the road, my first thought is not, “That could be valuable.”

My first thought is, “There is probably a reason somebody doesn’t want that anymore.” And if the object is upholstered, my second thought is usually, “Bedbugs.”

So the best random thing I’ve ever found is probably that Buck knife. Wherever I found it. Whenever I found it. However I found it.

Which means I can answer today’s question with confidence: I have found one genuinely useful thing in the wild.

I just can’t prove it was anywhere near a street.

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