HIDDEN TREASURE

First, could I remind blippers that summer doesn't end until the 23rd of September?

I have been grounded today so I've dug out a treasure. It is a spinach jade bowl, about the size of a grapefruit, with lugs, and dates from 1890 to 1900, not exactly Ming Dynasty but not exactly new, either. The bowl is so thinly carved that light shines through it, in this instance the bedside lamp.

It is put away because with two dogs, one cat, Himself and me about, clumsy oafs, all, and with terra cotta floors, it is in peril. I feel I don't dare leave it out, let alone use it for peanuts or old buttons, paper clips and stamps.

What would you do? I don't run to a glass display cabinet. It is a cherished gift, not something I dragged home from an auction myself. I'd hate to see it smashed. On the other hand what good is it stashed away?