A simple chore today turned into one of those moody nostalgic journeys of the mind that I couldn't shake. If you'll indulge me, maybe I can write my way out of it.
The chore was to take down the twin beds in one of the guest bedrooms and put them away. I got the twin beds when I was 5 years old, 57 years ago. For some unknown reason, I remember the day they came and the two men who set them up. On the back of one of the beds in four-inch stenciled black letters are the words "Rock Solid Maple." For some reason, I thought that made them special.
My excitement over the beds was so great that I even made mine up for about a week. One of my concerns was that if I slept in one of the beds every night, I would wear it out too soon. I solved that problem by alternating beds every night. The final solution came a year or so later when I got Duke, my boxer, who always slept in the other bed. That evened out things nicely.
My intrigue with what was just an ordinary pair of twin beds was probably due to the large drawers at the foot of each bed. My parents were gone when the beds came, so I proceeded to fill up the drawers with all my treasures. I was told soon enough that I could use one drawer for "junk," but the other would hold important stuff like blankets, sheets and pillowcases. Such a waste of a good drawer. During the next 15 years the drawers held comic books, baseball gloves, baseball cards, books and treasures long forgotten.
Our son Lem used the beds another 15 years or so. They have many miles on them. I counted 14 houses they have been moved to, some more than once. The beds, even though refinished several times, still bear the scars of model airplane glue and sleepovers that turned into wrestling matches.
Today, I put the slightly used mattresses and box springs on Craigslist. Free to anyone who needed them. They were gone in 10 minutes to a young single mother with three children who had to move back in with her parents.
The bed frames will go in storage in the garage attic. Grandchildren may use them one day or they may just end up in the dump. They will not just turn to dust because they are Rock Solid Maple.
I have bored you mightily, I'm sure, but I feel better.
:-)
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