Something Lost

I almost threw them out again
With the crumbs and apple cores
Swept them up with piles of dust
As they rolled across the floors

I don’t know why I can’t just
Keep them all in the same place
On the table, neatly labelled
Or in that cupboard that still has space

I swear sometimes they seem to have
A life all of their own
Any day they could get away
And I never would have known

I try to count them now and then
Spread them out across the bed
I can’t recall if I have them all
Or if some are still stuck in my head

Then I’ll scoop them up and hold them tight
To see if they still gleam
But through my grip I feel them slip
Like the logic in a dream

I’ve given up now, decided
That it isn’t worth the bother
By curtain call somehow we all
Lose our marbles one way or another