Passing the Torch, part 2: The Oak Table

Ages ago, in 1990, Devon and I found a truly extraordinary table. It was hand crafted in the late 1800’s, before wooden 2×4’s were invented. It is 50″ on each side, with seven leaves that expand it to a total length of 12 feet. It can seat 12 people easily and we have crowded 16 relatives and friends around this table for several holiday meals.

This oak table lived in a room of its own, a beautiful study that Devon and I designed and added on to our house in Arcadia, near Los Angeles, California. Our house in Arcadia was our first dream home, sitting on a quarter acre with a backyard full of oak trees, a lemon tree, and a rose garden. Over time we added a tree house, a rope swing, a full-size play house for Vanessa, a patio with a ping pong table, and even a trampoline. It was a playground for our children and their friends, and even for adults who attended our garden parties every Independence Day. The oak table was a part of our life there.

Over the past 35 years, this table has become a part of our family, a quietly faithful friend and companion. This table traveled with us from Arcadia up to Pleasanton, then to the little toy house, and finally arrived with us at the Cloud House, which was our second dream home.

The Cloud House sits on a ridge with a dramatic view of the San Francisco Bay. Across a canyon, a few miles away is a subdivision. At night that subdivision lights up like a little Italian village carefully placed there specifically for our enjoyment.

We sold the Cloud House in 2021 to move on to the next adventures of our lives. We currently travel much of the year, so we do not have a single place that we call home. Our beautiful oak table now needs a new home.

In our Arcadia home this table, extended to a respectable ten-foot length with a few leaves, participated in our dinner parties and held all the buffet dishes for our annual July Fourth party. Our children completed many school projects on this table. Devon, as PTA president, hosted several PTA meetings around this table.

At Castro Valley we hosted wine tastings for friends around this table. More unusual was the single-malt scotch tasting party for ten friends, which we hosted at the Cloud House.

Almost all the members of our extended family have shared meals with us around this table at the Cloud House. For Lola’s 90th birthday we hosted a dinner party for over 25 friends and family. For the wedding of Ryan and Gina several families stayed at our house to attend the event nearby on the San Francisco peninsula. For Devon’s 50th birthday party I set up a surprise party with Devon’s close friends from Los Angeles and Petulama staying at the Cloud House for an entire weekend. Occasionally cousins dropped in at the Cloud House to visit Lola, Devon, and me. Everyone sat at the oak table for several meals.

The Quirk family stopped by to visit Lola. They were driving from Seattle to Dallas and claimed San Francisco was somehow on the way. Danny, Johnny, and Barrett came to visit and stay a few nights. They all shared meals and conversation with us around the oak table.

This oak table has become a part of our family and we are sad to let it go. Over the past few years we have learned a little about letting go. We reluctantly accept that many things of life must eventually find their own paths to bring joy to other people, in other homes. We are simply caretakers for awhile. Eventually, each of us must pass the torch.

Where do family heirlooms go? Where will this table go? Will it find a home with you and become a part of your life? We hope so. Thanks for sharing our memories of this peculiar and wonderful table.