The Heart of Our Home

I have a gigantic dining table.  It takes up most of the space in our large dining room.   The table is squarish, and sturdy looking, with ten chairs that fit around it comfortably.

We bought the table so that we could have dinners with extended family.  We had it made as a matter of fact. Our family has outgrown the table for sit down dinners, but it’s great for buffets.

It’s much more than a dining table.  We don’t just eat at this table, we live here.  This table is the heart of our home.  This is where we do our projects, our studying, our homework.  This is where we sit down and visit with family.  This is where the kids roll out their play-dough and bake their creations in a cardboard oven.  Friend-Husband correct his papers here.

We have carved jack-o-lanterns, on this table.  We have made silly putty.  We have kneaded bread.  More than a dozen children have painted masterpieces at this table, or colored them.  Some have written stories here, and then read them to us. 

We have played Spoons around this table, as well as Great Dalmudy, Skip Bo, and Banana Grams.  We have played Apples to Apples, Scrabble, Clue, and Monopoly.   We have played Curses at this table, over and over again.  The adults are not very fond of this game, but the kids love it, and we love to hear them laugh.

We have had tea parties at this table.  The kind where you sip hot chocolate and eat dainty finger food.  You can dress up in fancy dresses and hats, or you can just pretend.   We like it both ways.

We have had car races on this table.  The roads are mad of play-dough.  I make it by the bucket and the kids build the roads.  It takes longer to build the roads than it does to race the cars.  That’s okay with me.

Our table is a collector.  It collects library books, stray dishes, pencils and crayons, coloring books, phones, scissors and pencils, paper scraps, sheet music, homework, and bits of every project of the day.  Although I clean it off regularly, it never stays that way for long.  It is a magnet for the pieces of our lives.

When it’s just us, Friend-Husband and I can eat on one corner, without disturbing any of the various projects that often land on our table.

This table is perfect for us.  I think it’s the one we knew in the pre-existence.  With all its clutter, it’s still the heart of our home.

Linda Garner