Let me tell you about my watch. Oh, it’s not an expensive watch; I saw it advertised on Facebook and fell in love. I try not to buy things I’ve seen on Facebook as, inevitably, they take months to come from China, and are disappointing when they do arrive. This watch was different.

It’s made of wood, in stripes of yellow, pink, red and green. It has a triangular face, and no numbers around the rim. It is not exactly unique, but I’ve never seen anyone else wearing one, and I always get comments on it – even from the “posh” jeweller in town. The company don’t make this style anymore; I assume because it wasn’t that popular. But it’s perfect for me and I love it.

A few months ago, it started to lose minutes and even stopped a couple of times. A sharp push of the button to the side and it would start again, but on Sunday it stopped working altogether. I took it to the shoe-repair/key-cutting/dry-cleaning/watch-battery place just by Tesco. The very nice man replaced the battery and said, “It’s still not working. It’s not the battery: it’s the mechanism.”

I sighed. “I suppose there’s nothing to be done, then.”

“Well,” he said, consideringly, “We could send it off for repair. The mechanism can be replaced, but it would be pricey.”

“How much?”

How much was approximately three times as much as I’d paid for the watch in the first place.

I didn’t hesitate. It may have been a decision that would not make sense to anyone else, but I love that watch. I can’t replace it, so it makes sense to repair it.

Another instance of comparative value is my favourite fountain pen. When my husband and I first started to get serious, he bought me a beautiful Waterman fountain pen, but it has never written as well as my first cheap plastic pen from WHS. I bought that one 48 years ago and it writes as beautifully now as it did then. It’s embarrassing to bring it out now, as it has a pink barrel, a turquoise lid and a yellow section. What can I say, this was the 1970s!

It is often said that you get what you pay for, but this is not always the case. It is especially not the case if your tastes do not run to the classic or overtly luxurious.

There are many things in life we value, but cannot buy, such as relationships and health. We also have material things in our lives we would save first if our house were on fire, and for which we would grieve if we lost them. For some people this is family photographs. I have always said I would save my shoes first, then my clothes and then my books. The husband, children and pets can look after themselves!

What do you have in your life that has little monetary value, but which is precious to you?

Mary

A Moodscope member