A Picnic Table
It’s worn, and weathered by the elements. Its wood is warped and the metal poles that brace it have rusted yet there it sits; a picnic table. Who uses it? Who climbs the hill and finds this little oasis of history beneath two old trees and an endless blue sky stretching beyond our sight? Who used it last? Teenagers have laid on top of the table witnessing the stars with their best friends. Some teens, the rebellious ones, have left their marks of graffiti upon its wood. Children run in circles around it and dogs and ducks take shelter beneath its shade.
Where are the families it was meant to hold upon its benches? Where are the moms and dads with children in tow ready to play on the playground and eat their fill of Sunday Lunch? Where have the families gone?
Many are now in a temperature controlled atmosphere at home where they do not plan to sweat or fight off any ants or mosquitoes. Some are at work; others are playing video games isolated in their own rooms. Still others are on computers or watching T.V. So many would not even think about having a picnic lunch at a park; the thought is foreign to today’s fast paced world.
Today, I ask you to consider packing a lunch and taking your family to a local park. Park your car and climb that hill. Look for the trees and discover a table that welcomes you worn and weathered from so many before you who shared and made memories at this same table. Take your family and spend some time at that picnic table where the blue sky is endless, the laughter from the play ground is loud and the memories made will be etched into your minds forever. Discover the simplicity of family at the picnic table.
