If Our Table Could Talk


Table1


If our table could talk it would have so many tales to tell.


Stories when it's been just the four of us, or when we've been visited by friends, first bites, tantrums and exasperation and trial & error, taxes all laid out, morning newspapers, weekend waffles, so many cups of coffee & OJ.


If our table could talk yesterday's story would be one of creation & friendship.



Table2



Table4


My friend Paolo came down for the day as he sometimes does and I decided we were going to have an art day. I'm still riding a wave of inspiration from a couple weekend's ago at the beach.


I've known Paolo now for over 20 years. I consider him a part of my family. You might have seen him in some of my scrapbook pages:



Coburg07


He's come down for the Coburg Antique Fair.


05-08


He's come down for the day and we took Polaroids.



Creativetime


He's traveled with me to events in the US.



Sushi


He's traveled with me to events abroad (he works for an airline which makes this sort of travel possible).



Us_paolo


Most of the time when we get together these days we do something creative whether it's taking photos or making collages or just talking about living lives infused with creativity.


If our table could talk it would tell you that yesterday we painted with wax (following a bunch of Claudine's tips from her Beeswaz Collage DVD), adhered old patterns picked up from Goodwill with gel medium, painted over the top, etc.



Table5


If our table could talk it would tell you how excited we were to have Anna come home from the beach and join us at the table.


She began with crayons, moved on to water painting with a foam brush, and then on to some of Tim's paint dabbers. Katie made up some brightly colored finger paints but really she only wanted whatever it was that was in my hand at the moment (and she really wanted to squeeze the paint onto her paper).

If our table could talk it would tell you just how excited I was that she might have an interest in this sort of play.



Table3


If our table could talk I think it would say that good stuff happened here yesterday. A friendship was nurtured and cherished. Canvases were created. Little kids made messes and giggled and chased Paolo around with swords.


If our table could talk I think it would say, "Again, please."

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51 thoughts

  1. pidgen says…
    07/29/2010

    When I have my own home, THAT's the kind of table I'm wanting to have! Loved this post! :)

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  2. Mary-- The Yellow Door Paperie says…
    07/29/2010

    What a beautiful post. I love that you have friendships that foster creativity.

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  3. Jenell says…
    07/29/2010

    Ali, you have such a way with words . . . simple thoughts that develop into a story where I want to read more and more. Just thinking about our kitchen table and what has occurred there for 34 years now, 3 kids and now a grandchild later. If my kitchen table could talk . . . love the idea!

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  4. Suzette says…
    07/29/2010

    love this post, Ali! You are pure inspiration.

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  5. Paulette says…
    07/29/2010

    I love that you have such a friend Ali...my wish is for everyone to experience at least one of those very special relationships :o) Thanks for sharing xo

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  6. Barb M. says…
    07/29/2010

    Thank you for such great example of story. This was a pleasure to read. The canvases are amazing and so is your friendship. Anna is beyond sweet.

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  7. Carolyn E says…
    07/29/2010

    If my table could talk right now, it's saying that we need to sit more at it instead of using it as a landing strip for stuff. To get back to what we used to do, eating, crafting, playing cards and more there.
    ...thank you for this post Ali, going to clean it off.

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  8. Jill D says…
    07/29/2010

    My mom gave me the 100+ year old table that was in her family farmhouse. We craft on it every other Friday night. We eat on it. We use it for cooking overflow. We pile things on it, take stuff off, and start again. It needs to be refinished and fixed because it's really wiggly but it has 100 years of stories that it could tell, 100 years. That AMAZES me!

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  9. Sue P. says…
    07/29/2010

    Ali, thank you for making the everyday profound. i so appreciate your prespective and the way your thoughts touch my soul! Thanks again

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  10. Heather I says…
    07/29/2010

    This is a beautiful post - and a scrapbook page (maybe a mini??) in the future!! God Bless.

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  11. deb says…
    07/29/2010

    I love that. Anna's gotten so big. She's darling.

    Reply 0 Replies
  12. Peg says…
    07/29/2010

    How wild...I was digging through older stuff on your blog not long ago (can't even remember what I was doing honestly) and had thought "I wonder where her friend Paolo has been" and boom, here's a lovely, lovely post all about a day with Paulo. So glad you had a wonderful day worth repeating over and over. How fun will it be if Anna has a passion for all this arty goodness??
    Peg

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  13. tara pakosta says…
    07/29/2010

    so sweet!!!
    I hope anna loves art just like you
    so you can create TOGETHER!!!
    Anna reminds me so MUCH of my daughter Ava when she was that age! it's uncanny reallY!
    tara

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  14. Katie @ cakes, tea and dreams says…
    07/29/2010

    Love this. Creating in community is always wonderful...and so many good things happen around the table.
    I'll have to think about what my table would say!

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  15. Steff says…
    07/29/2010

    You could be writing about/showing MY table! Love it. I think it's so hard sometimes in our present to remember we are creating memories for our future. Time is really a strange thing...

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  16. karlalala says…
    07/29/2010

    Hi Paolo!!

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  17. Amanda C says…
    07/29/2010

    Ahh, so fun to have creative friends and kids to share with! Love the story of your yesterday. Awesomeness!

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  18. WEndy High says…
    07/29/2010

    So awesome and inspiring Ali! I love reading your posts and thinking about how easy it is for you to blog with such great ideas and flow! I hope one day I can do that! Thanks!

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  19. Karen G says…
    07/29/2010

    I LOVE this idea! Love the idea of telling family stories by way of a much loved and/or used piece of furniture or other inanimate object. So many 'things' are more than just 'things' (and one reason why we hold on to them for long periods of time) and they do indeed have stories to share! :>
    (Anna looks adorable getting her creativity on! My heart smiles when I see my kidlets spark their own create love! :>)

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  20. heidig says…
    07/29/2010

    Great post! Would love to see the finished version of those canvases. They look really cool!

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  21. Bonnie says…
    07/29/2010

    I love reading your posts!

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  22. amy tangerine says…
    07/29/2010

    mmm, warms my heart to get creative with a friend. and absolutely loving the pattern paper on the canvases. swoon

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  23. ale says…
    07/29/2010

    love this post, ali. love the way you tell your stories.
    thank you for sharing them with us.

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  24. Tania says…
    07/29/2010

    Oh, that's the best post I've read in weeks, anywhere. Thank you for sharing your incredible spirit with people Ali, it is appreciated!

    Reply 0 Replies
  25. Kaly says…
    07/29/2010

    Love this beautiful story! I always enjoy your posts and stories. Thank you!

    Reply 0 Replies

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