Bring Out the Tablecloth

This post sat in the drafts to be published at The Happy, Resourceful Home circa February 21, 2014. My grandma passed away last June 2023. I treasure the memories of the many meals I ate around her table.

Sometimes I bring out the tablecloth. It's not for a special occasion or a particular feast day, it's just because. The kids will ask, "Mommy! What are we celebrating?"

This last time my daughter (almost 3) kept asking, "Is it a birthday? Is it a birthday?!" I say to them, "No, not a birthday/feast day/special guest . . . it's just because today is a great day!" Even if the day hasn't been going smoothly or perfectly, I like to think that every day has the potential to be something great; every meal has the potential to be something beautiful.

I like to think that the tablecloth means something. When we have a special guest over it signifies that we are grateful for their presence and they are, in fact, special. When it's a feast day, the tablecloth signifies a shift; today is different, special, and a cause for celebration.

But why bring out a tablecloth for no apparent reason? Doesn't that cheapen all the other days that are actually special? 

I don't think it does. I feel like family is meant to be celebrated and if I am willing to bring out the best for a guest or for a particular day of the year, then why not my own family - my own husband and children?  

My Grandma brings out a tablecloth for every. single. meal. Whether she is dining with one other person or 20, the tablecloth comes out. I don't know what her table looks like fully set for a meal without a tablecloth. The table would seem so, so . . . naked. She has different tablecloths for different occasions. I love that my Grandma does this. It brings a sort of excitement to an ordinary meal. And it doesn't end with the tablecloth. Every entree is in a nice dish. Every knife, fork, and spoon has a place. Grandma's table never, ever feels stuffy. Every meal feels special and beautiful because she spends time thinking about how it is going to be enjoyed by the people she loves most.

Meals can turn into very ordinary events. Our lives are busy. We eat in a rush. There is no extra time. And we eat how many times on any given day? But I propose that meals are an opportunity to introduce beauty and celebration into the fabric of our lives, even the most ordinary days. They are a way to say "I love you - you matter - I care - this moment is meant to be savored" to the people around us. Again, if we are willing to do that with a special guest, shouldn't we be just as willing to do that with our husband and children and family?

Bring out the tablecloth. Take a chance that something as ordinary as a cloth can transform and deepen your connection with the people around you. Celebrate the people you love the most. Today is a great day!