I’m not sure anyone can be reduced by the objects they used, but these three unimpressive, dowdy even, treasures are Mamita incarnate. The thimble, ever present as she sewed our clothes. The scissors that she’d carry around in her apron pocket and which snipped away many a “this” and “that.” And the amber bottle with “Elixer Donatal” written in her hand on the fading label. The jewel green liquid medicine had Crème de menthe flavoring and was dispensed frequently by the spoonful for her “nervous stomach.”  Donatal is indeed an elixir. Laced with belladonna and phenobarbital (i.e., a barbiturate), it was just the thing for a homemaker grandmother with a jumpy tummy. It’s also highly “habit-forming.”  Here’s the irony of ironies. Mamita died of stomach cancer at the age of 81. I miss her.