Silverware Drawers

Critters

The other day when cleaning sesame seeds and peppercorns from the plastic silverware tray, I noticed the varied assortment of forks and spoons we’ve collected over the years: a fork and butter knife from my late mother, spoons from IKEA, and various pieces from the first set of dinnerware we had over 45 years ago in our first home.

We lived in a two bedroom, one bathroom ranch in North Royalton, Ohio. The kitchen had a bread drawer with a sliding cover that had a hole just big...