Late in her life my Mom began to correspond with cousins, step cousins, half cousins removed, and the like.
In one letter she complained that her family kept secrets, and from the tea spilt in later letters it’s clear she was done with that.
There was the secret of the chair shown above. I have often wondered where Mom’s dainty chair came from, and why she took such care to restore it.
The photo shows a letter that explains the provenance of the chair peeking out in the background.
“There was also a set of six stenciled chairs that Bob wanted. He managed to acquire five but could never find the sixth one. My mother had to sew a cover for it to hide the stenciling should Bob ever come by. Arthur” [Stepgrandfather] “and she were immensely pleased at pulling one over on Bob. I have the chair and use it shamelessly.“
Very happy that Mom didn’t pass on that sneaky gene. I would say, “BOB! Don’t forget to say hello to your chair when you come to visit.”
2 responses to “Family Chair”
That is WILD re: the chair. Fascinating. (can’t just say “I am one of the heirs and I want one of the chairs, so I am keeping it” within whatever context this is, I guess? Or it was just more fun for her this way? The mysteries within revealed mysteries!)
I think it was more of a way for my grandmother to say, “I married one of the sons, so I should get one of the chairs.” Like she was part of the family. As opposed to her role as the Other Woman, which is what she was, until she married Arthur, at which point another Other stepped in to fill her place.