A place of comfort

I've enjoyed reading about the special chairs in homes across the area. The stories have touched me and some have made me smile.

For the final installment in the great "chair affair," I'd like to share two things:

Eva May Hendrickson, of Garfield, Wash., wrote to tell me the story of her grandfather's bow-backed armchair.

The chair was purchased at the time of Hendrickson's grandfather's marriage in 1895. It was always "his" chair.

After her grandfather's death in 1922, Hendrickson's father inherited the chair and made it his own. He even brought it to the table with him for meals.

"My dad died in 1970," Hendrickson wrote. "My husband brought the chair home to our ranch and placed it at the head of the table."

Hendrickson's husband died in 2001. The chair, with all the memories attached to it, is a great source of comfort.

"Telling this story is a fine opportunity to leave this bit of history to my grandchildren," Hendrickson wrote me. "Which one will sit in the old bow-backed chair at the head of their own table?"

Doreen Ball, of Rathdrum, Idaho, sent a poem she wrote about her mother-in-law's favorite chair.

I thought one stanza captured perfectly the feeling so many of us have about our favorite spots for relaxing:

"And when the leaves start turning and the long months bring the snow,

There's only one, warm, cozy place where she will want to go.

She'll pour a cup of coffee and comb her snow-white hair,

Tuck her blanket tight around and lay back in her chair."