My seven-year-old is sick with the inevitable cold school aged kids get in September. She is away from school this morning and is instead working at the dining room table on a project she calls "customizing ponies," which means she is taking one of the My Little Ponies (that I paid $8.99 for, ahem) and applying various shades of colour to it. I will try to get her to put some newspaper down to protect the table which may or may not work, but the truth is this table already has its share of Sharpie marks, coffee cup burns, and scratches...so many scratches. In as much as the kitchen is the heart of the home for many of us, in our house the dining room table is the heart of projects - from pony customization to Halloween costume making to homework to Lego creations to art projects to Halo helmets made from card stock, hot glue, body filler, and spray paint (this last one is a long story).
It is also the table where many more dinners have been spent, almost all of which have included the people I love best in the world. It is the table many hard conversations have taken place, and where both sad and joyful announcements have been made. It is where I sit when I call my mom every evening. It is where I wrote a good chunk of my first book. It is where I write this blog. It is solid and strong enough to handle many elbows leaning on it, spilled glasses of wine, platters of turducken, and cast iron pots full of ribs. And yes, you guessed it folks, I still think it is beautiful.
wishing you a day as colourful as a Sharpie,
hk
Scratches add character. There is no table like that one. Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI hope you and your lovely wife will be seated around it with us for a meal one of these fine days, Jason. :)
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