focus: on the kitchen table

It's time for the second installment of focus, a little photo project that Larissa and I are collaborating on.

Each week we hope to take time to Focus ourselves and to Focus our cameras.

To Focus on looking and seeing,

to Focus on how we spend our time,

to Focus on friends and family and what's important,

to Focus on what's been there all the along but we just didn't take the time to look.

This week our Focus is on 'the kitchen table.

I discovered a few things about my kitchen table this week. First is that I cannot keep the tablecloth clean. It's dirty within seconds of being put on the table. So, I need more tablecloths. 

I love our kitchen table (really it's the dining room table). It's a 54" round oak pedestal table that's nearly 100 years old. The table is in constant use - as a landing pad for stuff, as a place for crafting or studying, and of course as the spot where we take our meals together. 

For some reason, the cat also loves the table. He's always up there to see if something good is there for him. Usually there is, since there are people in this house who think that clearing the table is for the birds. Or at least for the mama. 

The kitchen table is the center of our family life. I was grateful this week to really pay attention to how we use the table. And to putting more effort into keeping it clear and ready for meals and projects and family time. I'd call it a microcosm of our home and our life - if the table is in order then I feel like everything else is too. I don't know that I had connected the dots on that until this week. I guess that's what this Focus thing is all about - gaining a better understanding of myself and my life. That's a good thing, indeed. 

Happy Wednesday, friends. 

Comments

[Heather]

What a smile. I find ours is a hub too.

[larissa]

Sarah, ours is the hub of our house too. And it always has at least one electronic device, one book and one snack/meal that no one cleaned up on it too. Your tablecloth is so cheery and bright. As you can see I no longer even try to use tablecloths because at our house we can barely get through one meal without a spill! You asked about our table - it's the Sourav dining table from World Market\Cost Plus. We've only had it 6 months but it's a big, sturdy table with a lot of surface area and it cleans up easily with a wet cloth. Right now it's listed for $499 but about every other month they have a furniture sale and they'll let you know if you get on their emailing list (plus they also send 20% off coupons)- we got ours for $400.

Thanks so much for playing along. Yesterday was a busy, completely nutty day during which i couldn't get to the computer until really late and I would've never posted had it not been for this little project of ours. I'm so glad we're doing this together!

[Kelly]

Ha, ha. It's nice to see that my cats aren't the only one's who sit on the table and stick their heads in bags... or glasses of milk.....

[Sarah Jackson]

Or drinking the tomato soup...

[Hanna]

Beautiful! It brings back such great memories for me -- when I was a kind, we had a big old round oak table in the kitchen that was set aside for arts and crafts. It was constantly piled high with acorns and flowers and construction paper and whatever else we were collecting and bringing inside. We ate in the dining room, so this table was truly set aside for making. That was some twenty years ago ... seems like such a progressive and fun idea now that I think about it!!

Thanks for your reflection and beautiful photos. It makes me happy to think about all you guys gathered 'round that table.