To Make A Home
an ode to all my mother's hand-me-downs
The TV stand wobbles, the bookshelf and kitchen table are chipped,
sparkly pink nail polish stained the coffee table,
and the paint on the pots and pans is fading from years of use,
yet I want for nothing
because the TV stand once held the plants in my mother's dining room,
the bookshelf, once on the opposite wall, housed a set of old encyclopedias before it moved in with me,
I have lugged this kitchen table to four different apartments, slowly wearing down the screws on the legs, but it still carries memories of the family dog begging for scraps with his head in my lap below,
the coffee table, carelessly painted on one end, claimed by my sister at seven years old, still holds my clutter just fine.
Someone once asked me why I did not want nice things, not seeing the value of my hand-me-downs, worn as they are,
they could not see the memories, feel my family in the room regardless of the hundreds of miles between us,
they could not understand me or what it takes to make a place a home.
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Comments (5)
Very impressive! I loeve it!🥰
Very sweet and poignant. I agree with Suze in that there is something very comforting about surrounding yourself with sentimental, worn-in objects.
Beautiful! I love the coziness of objects that are "lived in." my favorite pieces of furniture are all hand-me-downs because the pressure to keep them perfect is off. I'm glad that you're able to surround yourself with things that bring you comfort.
When my wife & her sister were going through things after their mother passed, it was the stories I wanted to hear. Those are the things my wife & I treasure. Sadly, I was disappointed as her sister & brother-in-law (who I love dearly) took a much more utilitarian view of things & basically went through the house pointing & saying, "We could use that." It's the only time I remember being really upset & disappointed with them.
Been there before.