I have a little story to tell about our rocking chair that sits dominantly in our living room.
This chair has a great history. Many memories, so let’s begin..
Fifty years ago, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. She was as sweet as sugar, but she was not a sleeper. Day & night Naomi wanted to be held and walked. My husband & I were falling off our feet.
One afternoon, I thought if I don’t get some sleep, I’m going to collapse... I was so overtired. I called my parents, spoke to my father and asked him if he was busy.
Being the smart man that he was, he immediately said, “what do you need?” and I said “sleep”. He asked me if I could wait about half and hour and they would come over. What could I say but “sure”.
Half an hour later, they arrived carrying a very large package with a big red bow.
Unwrapping the package, my father said “this is not for you, it’s for Naomi”.
The gift was a gorgeous rocking chair with a large rabbit decal on the seat. Naomi loved her rocking chair. I fed her sitting on the rocking chair, and when it was time for her to sleep, a few rocks back and forth and she was out cold.
As she got older, we would sit on the rocking chair and I would read to her, and as a toddler, she would ‘read’ to her dolls.
This chair was by far the best gift I had received.
A couple of years later, Devorah was born and we introduced her to the rocking chair. Sometimes, when I fed Devorah, Naomi would squeeze onto the chair and the three of us would rock.
What fun that was!
The girls loved their chair. As they grew up, the rocking chair stood proudly in their room. No way did they want it moved to another room.
Going forward, Eli-Chaim joined our family. The chair became his and he loved it. We would spend hours rocking and reading, laughing, watching Sesame Street, and bonding. I remember these days like it was yesterday.
Our kids grew up and our chair was folded up and put in a corner.
Twenty-five years ago, we made Aliyah, and our rocking chair was one of the few things in our lift.
Naomi, the baby who my parents bought the rocking chair for, was now a mother and I offered her the rocking chair.
I was so excited the second generation was going to enjoy the chair.
When Devorah gave birth, the chair went to her. This chair was well travelled.
Years later,when I saw the chair folded up and sitting in a corner of Devorah’s house, I asked if she still needed the chair and she said “no” and so I took it home.
At some point over the years, all our grandchildren enjoyed the chair. They drew pictures & stuck stickers all over it.
I took photos as a memory, then sanded it down, painted it mahogany, bought nice blue cushions and placed it in the living room.
My fifty year old chair is home.
That’s all for now
Miriam
Epilogue: The rocking chair was a gift for Naomi, and for tired me, my parents treated me to a once a week cleaning lady for as long as I needed one. The first cleaning lady tried to preach to me...she lasted 2 hours. The second cleaning lady was too busy telling me how to cook. She lasted an hour and a half. The third one was also a winner. I told my parents, how much I appreciated the offer, but I’m not a cleaning lady person to have under my feet.
And so I learned to managed. And if the floor didn't get washed...my world didn't come to an end.......
When my first child was born, my parents bought me a rocking chair. It was perfect for sitting when nursing all my children. We kept it until it fell apart and could no longer be fixed.
ReplyDeleteWhen my daughter was expecting her first, I got her a comfortable chair...