In our over-consumer-society, I guess I've fallen in the other ditch. I buy used, and too seldom throw away.17 years ago a friend and I drove to a flee market at a mission-house, or a prayer house, as we put it. A Bethel. There I found this bench, just like the benches from the Sunday school of my childhood. Hubby Gunnar turned red and white when he saw it. "Where is that bench meant to be placed," he interrogated. On the balchony. He laughed and meant it would rot within next spring. My sweet husband soon made up. Later on, that summer he made me a solid wood table to go with the bench, and painted them red.
The pair have been our outdoor furniture for 17 years, no rot, despite lots of heavy weather, rain, storm, snow.
Now they're placed in the upper garden. A quiet place around sundown-time. Inviting for reconciliation and devotion.
Originated by MaryT, check
hers for today.
29 comments:
Wow, a beautiful settting for your quiet time. I like the wind chimes in the pic. I have similar ones near my bedroom window.
Check out my red here
Oh that was a lovely post and I love that bench especially because it is red
Lovely. I had an old church pew in one of my homes but when we moved it was too large for my new home and we finally had to sell it.
I love your red one!
What a beautiful story for this Ruby Tuesday! I love your bench. So simple, so functional. I loved this post, thank you!
Tink *~*~*
My Mobile Adventures *~*~*
Wow! I'd say that recycled bench was a very good buy! Happy Ruby Tuesday!
That is a great place to contemplate.
My Ruby Tuesday photo is now posted, too! Hope you can hop by my entry if you have the time. Thanks!
I love this bench. What a wonderfully serene picture.
Such an inviting place to sit. I love your bench!
What a nice story. I like your red bench.
This red bench is great! When furniture is built to this standard, and with a thick coat of red paint, it will last, and a long time.
Red is the perfect color: in the summer, you can see it in the thicket of green. In the snow, the red is easy to spot. As you say, it is the perfect place for spiritual contemplation. Which everyone needs...
Beautiful bench.
Paz
Love that photo. The bench and the spot look so peaceful and inviting. Sounds like you have a nice hubby.
A perfect spot for future pitter-pattering of little feet ... when Serina gets married and blesses you with grandbabies!
How wonderful to rescue and cherish old things.
The photo is a work of art. Deep rich color, beautiful shadows.
so peaceful looking. Nice picture
Felisol, what a wonderful story of the RED bench and the matching table! Thanks for sharing it with us on Ruby Tuesday! :)
Hi, Felisol
A beautiful set of gardens, creativity, love and good taste prevailed, who knows why is lasting 17 years.
hugs, Denise
It's a very welcoming scene... invites you to take a load off for a while.
A bench with character and a history, I like that. You have a sweet husband painting it red and making a table too.
What a wonderfully inviting photo. I too love to find and use old things. In fact, I have an old oak church bench which will soon be homeless when we move to the new house. I never thought of painting it red and moving it outdoors, but I do like the idea. Thanks for the inspiration!
That 's historical furniture. We have benches like that in the churches the British built
Dear anu,
I have wind chimes three places in our garden. It is a lovely, peaceful sound. Makes me forget that I miss the running river back in the valley of my childhood.
Dear Marcia,
I too like the warm, red color.
When it stood in the "Bethel" it was yellow/brownish. So dull.
Dear ellen b
Sorry you had to sell your pew. They make such good memories and
are so solid, they can endure outdoor life better than new garden furniture.
Dear tink,
I also like the clean way this bench is constructed.
Guess it was made in the thirties by a local carpenter.
Dear yetg
a good buy it was too,5 dollars.
Dear shjenn,
Yepp, with a late cup of coffee or an early glass of wine, the bench is great.
Dear onanglewings,
Still love your name. Many wonders come on angle wings.
Dear linda,
would be nice to invite you over.
Dear Bobbie,
I guess you would have liked the place even better in March. A huge Forsythia is then in full blossom in front of the bench.
Dear Ralph,
I do hope the bench will last. Guess I have to repaint it before winter comes on.
I have a picture of the bench with a thick layer of snow on iit.
Dear paz,
glad you liked it.
Dear raven,
I like make our garden a place to be, not only a place to see.
My hubby is one in a billion.
Too kind for me, but guess what; he still loves me.
Dear Mrs. Mac,
Oh yes,I am looking forward to Serina coming home with grandchildren....sometime.
Better let her decide when, I think, or I risk not getting any.
Dear dianne,
thank you for nice words.
Dear tommy v
thank you for visiting.
Dear teach,
thank you for teaching me to look for beauty in a new way.
I am so enjoying Ruby Tuesdays.
Dear denise,
you are so kind.
The best things will always last don't you think?
Dear mojo,
You too are most welcome to join in.
Peaceloving people are easy to entertain.
Dear hildegarde,
Flanders lies in Belgium, how stupid of me not to remember.
Really sorry.
The table soon has proved to be as solid as the bench
Hubby Gunnar is a rock solid guy.
Dear maracas,
hope you keep on to that bench.
Old oak will sure stand some sun and rain outdoors.
Dear Amrita,
always learn something new from you.
I thought that "design" was Norwegian. But think about it, many of the old missions came to Norway from England.
So I'm sure you are right.
From Felisol
Hi Felisol, I really do like your red bench and table. That reminded me of the little red school desk--not the original color--that Mrs. Jim bought 30-some years ago. It is still the same but worse for one flood as when we bought it. Her spouse never was so nice as Gunnar.
Thank you so much for checking on me while we were roughing it after Hurricane Ike. It meant a lot to me for your concern and prayers. We are back home now and just cleaning up after living in the dark those four days before we went to Karen's.
Ike was a very bad storm, a lot of people don't have a home left to come back to, others will take more than a year to get things back in shape.
That storm (Claudette) that flooded us in 1979 kept us from living in our home for six months and when we moved back in for Christmas that year, we still did not have covering on our bare concrete floors until the next year. :-)
I could not do Ruby Friday this week as then we were sitting in the dark with an OK otherwise home.
It was nice how you answered the commenters, it takes soooooo long to comment on each other's pages. There are so many. But I still try to read all, many have become blogging friends.
..
Thank you again for caring so much. :-)
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Oh, how I'd love to spend an hour on that bench, enjoying your garden.
I love the bench and your prose describing it.
One of my hubby and my first pieces of furniture was a 250 year old deacon's bench we found at an antique shop in Colorado.
I still have it - it now sits in my bedroom across from my bed.
Care,
Jlo
Dear Jim,
I did and do care a lot of Jim's bunch's well being.
Living on the west coast I know a tiny bit of what hurricanes can do. (Ours are milder,though).
When I learned that the wind was heading towards Galveston, I started praying.
When you went in black for several days, I prayed even more.
People are important to me, and I knew all your faces (and legs!) have shared your ups, should I then not care when it really mattered?
Of course, that's what the internet is for.
Now I blend in a hallelujah!
From Felisol
Dear Judi, jlo,
You'd be most welcome to spend more tan an hour in peace and tranquility, among flowers, herbs and birds singing from the high pine a few meters away.
The good thing about people sharing, they don't have to talk to communicate.
Being midst in the blessings of summer life is enough.
From Felisol
That is lovely and my very favorite color. At least I wear it whenever I get the chance:-) Hope you're doing well...praying & sending hugs.
blessings,
Vicki
Dear Vicki,
thank you so much for visiting.
I am doing just fine at the moment. Not so much time for blogging though.
Mostly I am over at the Pilgrim Pals.
Then alas, fall is creeping in over us. I reluctantly have to accept that fact, and hurry making a last effort in the garden.
As ever the spring begins in the autumn. I have to plant bulbs, fertilize and have even bought some plants for half prize that must come in the earth in a hurry.
Later will be time for contemplating and more reading/blogging, I hope.
From Felisol
Hi Felisol. Thank you for checking on us again. We are settled in pretty good now, even went to church this morning. (The sermon was from Job, very fitting for the troubles we have all seen.)
Adi doesn't get bothered by storms but our new little dog, Katrin sure does. We put them both in our bed room and she just couldn't settle down, all night long she acted up.
..
I guess you know of Katrin, I've posted more about her on my other blog, Jim's Little Photo Place.
Mrs. Jim literally 'inherited' her from a friend who died. Katrin is a miniture poodle.
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