The Table of Knowledge

The title for this blog originated in the fertile mind of a friend on Instagram to this pic. I have called it a "Buffet of Books." That is certainly more canine and pedestrian sounding. I like the "Table of Knowledge." That is magisterial and fitting of a great mind such as myself. Me and my 30 loyal blog readers. 40 on an up week. 

The table of which these tomes of Western Civilization rest goes back in my family to the 1960's some time. It has that look that was supposed to be modern like Miles Davis's modal jazz. Whereas, Miles Davis has aged well, the table looks hopelessly dated. And, as far as I can recall, it was always swaying and unstable due to a missing tooth in its structure that connected the bridge part of the table to the legs. I remember it back in high school being tipsy. In the 40 years since, it never broke, the other tooth held on,  providing just enough support to keep it all together, albeit shakily.

I think I inherited the table when my mom moved from the family home to Florida. I saved the table from the junkyard. Along with my childhood desk in my study, I believe these two pieces of furniture are all that I have from when my family was a whole. Before my parents' divorce in the late 1970's. My family,  like the table, became unsteady. So, it seems to have resonance beyond just being a table.  It is a reminder of what remained. Maybe not entirely sturdy.

Last year, armed with Elmer's Glue, I made a half-hearted attempt to repair the piece. Beginning the work with Elmer's sealed its failure from the start. Not sure of what I was thinking besides of only having Elmer's around. I am not even certain why I have Elmer's Glue. It is useless for all but pasting pictures on paper. I may have also attempted to repair the table with Krazy Glue which was too far the other way. 

A couple of weeks ago while I was at the hardware store, I spotted some Gorilla Glue. I figured that it might be a good resource to have around as an in-between glue of the two extremes. In other words, a glue that would actually work in 99% of scenarios where glue was required. Unlike the remaining 1% split between Elmer's and Krazy.

Last Saturday, I decided to take on the table repair again. Having the right glue was certainly needed but another element was to figure out how to create a vise of sorts, pushing the pieces together and keeping it that way for at least a couple of hours until the glue set. The instructions stated that it would take 24 hours for the glue to fully dry but after two hours, it could stand alone. 

I came up with the idea to turn the table upside down and lay it on the floor and use one heavy chair to provide support for one side of the legs and another heavy chair to push the other side legs into place. Kind of like furniture orthodontia. Then, the glue would do its thing while the chairs created the braces. Voila! It worked. After 40 some years of languishing in a hobbled state, it was fixed as good as new. I was pleased yet frustrated with myself. I have spent years being worried that the table would break. Rather than think how I could fix it, I just tolerated its unsteadiness and hoped the other tooth would hold on and not break off like its twin had many years ago.

There is of course a greater lesson here. A little intentional thinking and effort goes a long way to repairing and rectifying a situation. Steadiness can be restored. There is that idea in the Bible that says something along the lines that "When things are shaken, strengthen the things that remain."