We always took all of our meals, breakfast, dinner and supper, in the dining room.  Our kitchen wasn’t large enough to allow the seven members of our family to sit around the “Old Oak Table.”   We always sat in same chairs and same place.   I was always seated beside my mother.  The table was round, however, we quite often left two leaves in for convenience.

It was also where we played board games and put puzzles together and a work-station for anything that needed repair.  The table had many nooks and crannies underneath with many logical places to hide a piece of food that didn’t quite meet with our taste approval.  We were always expected to clean our plate and this is how we were able to meet that requirement.

When you were little, like so many kids, you probably said a prayer before most meals.  There were five of us kids and by the time I was able to talk, those pleasantries had been passed down to my youngest sister and me while our three older siblings just sat back and listened and probably tried to figure out what was said.  With steepled hands we said our supper prayers.   My little prayer was always in Swedish (Gud välsigna denna mat) because I hadn’t learned to speak English.  It consisted of three words, it was supposed to be four but in my haste to put  my spoon to use, one word was usually left out.  Until we were all much older, no one ever corrected me because they all wanted to dive into that same delicious potato soup we had just about every evening.  Mom was impressed with my prayer because she also understood that shortened prayer as a compliment, God maten, amen (good food, amen)

It is a beautiful table made of sturdy oak.  Now when I occasionally visit my youngest sister we usually enjoy a meal at that same table.  I just can’t resist reaching under the table, feeling to see if any unwanted food might still be in one of those crannies.  I sometimes try to fake it by bringing my hand from under the table with a morsel of food my sister was serving us.  It’s usually good for a laugh and reminds us of some precious  memories dating back more than eighty years.

Our Old Oak Table

In my sister’s dining room, this table is still in use.