In times of crisis, I've found that people develop attachments to the most curious objects. My sister once collected rubber ducks dressed as historical figures, but my latest obsession – a medium-sized ceramic flower in a shade of purple that hovers somewhere between grape juice and midnight at a disco – seems far more sophisticated. "It's called sea lettuce," I explained to my neighbor, who had stopped by to borrow eggs and instead found me standing on a stepstool, searching for the perfect spot to hang it. "Though really, it looks more like what would happen if Prince had designed aquatic plants." The ceramic piece came with a keyhole mount that she said reminded her of a tiny submarine porthole. But there was something perfect about its modest size, like it knew exactly how much space it deserved to occupy. I hung it in the kitchen, replacing a copper jello mold that my mother had insisted would "really tie the room together." "It would look lovely in a nursery," she mused, though she knew perfectly well I had converted my spare bedroom into a sanctuary for my collection of vintage typewriters. "That's what you said about my assemblage of antique spoons arranged to look like a peacock," I reminded her. But this was different. The purple sea lettuce had transformed my kitchen from a place where I merely burnt toast into an underwater fantasy where mermaids might stop by for coffee, assuming mermaids drink coffee and aren't too picky about it being slightly burnt. Every time I glance at it while making dinner, I imagine it's quietly judging my cooking skills with the same gentle disdain as my ex-husband's mother, only this time, I find it endearing.