The Sad Little Box

Years later, they found the hatbox buried in the back yard.
No one wanted to open it.
There was no treasure inside, at least not the type you could take to the bank.

The house was over 100 years old. There was a long list of previous owners.
The dirt was packed hard around the hatbox, years of rainstorms and blizzards and droughts.
Maybe someone had tried to plant a tree over the spot so that the box would never be found
but there was no tree there, not even a stump.

The police said there was no sign of obvious trauma or injury
but some injuries only leave bruises and don’t break bones.
There was a tiny blanket in the box, the thin cotton fabric faded and half-rotted through.
There was still a little pink around the edges.