"Object of My Affection"

I just read a great article in this month's Ladie's Home Journal. Oh I love it! It's called, "The Object of My Affection". The writer, Ann Hood explains why she could never get rid of her rickety old dinner table. "To others it looks like a scarred, beat-up, old fashioned kitchen table. To me it's a link to family - past and present." She goes on to say, "Who can explain which object represents home to different family members?... We tend to think that the things we cherish are a link to our past."

My mom still has the dinner table that my little brother, Justin and I sat at in high school and college. She tried to sell it once, even had the check in hand with the prospective owner standing next to her, but just could not do it. She kept it and now hopes for me to have it. Where else is a place where family can sit facing each other in communication. I am excited that this article has sparked in me memories that soothe the loneliness I feel for my family. Justin and I were once very close sharing many late night talks. I relished those talks when he would rehash what his day had handed him. I was needed. Now, both happily married married and living on opposite sides of the country, I think about him sitting at the end of my bed and think I get the sentiment of the dinner table. It holds special memories as does the end of my old bed because that was where my brother sat. God has blessed me tremendously. I am thankful one of the things He blesses us with is our memories and the special objects that make them so real so many years later because those memories are the foundation and stepping stones that move us ever forward. I look forward to sitting at the end of my daughters bed listening, just listening to her tell me what her day handed her. I look forward to the dinner table being not just for dinner but for homework, for Play-Doe creations, talks with friends over coffee and someday a place where Sarah, her dad and I will discuss colleges, and someday wedding plans. Maybe these things will not all happen at the dinner table, but where ever they do I know those places will be to me as sacred places, reminders of the moment to moment gifts God uses to show me His love, to build my foundation, bless my spirit, and use me as a vessel He can use to pour into the lives of my family and friends.

I would love to know of special momentos you have kept over the years because of the memorys that hold whether it be an old pot from grandma's, a pillow from a friend, or a teddy bear can't abandon because of all the nights he comforted you through sleepless nights. My teddy bear that comforted me to sleep for years and years is currently in Sarah's room. It may not be of importance to her, but for some reason just looking over at him at three in the morning as my daughter fights sleep, its an unexplainable comfort. What can I say? Call me sentimental. :)