My middle daughter Emma is in love and about to be married. I know, when you look at the picture you will say, What? She’s only 12! But by the time she’s married she will be 22 years old. Young? Yes, but she’s well prepared and has made an awesome choice in her forever mate.

She’s been thinking about this wedding day for a couple years now and she wants it to be about family most of all. Her reception will be filled with touches of family and sentiment and her swing will take center stage.

So some swing history………The swing began it’s life about 40 years ago at the request of Fawn, Emma’s great grandmother. Fawn’s son Virgil, my father in law, is a handy soul and has taught himself many fine skills involving wood. So he took up the task of his mothers request for a swing. Now no one can remember what the conversation was about, but I imagine she told him of her desire to have a place where she could sit and watch the sun go down, or enjoy a spring breeze. So with pattern in hand he built the first swing he had every built, and then with some angle iron produced a perfect metal frame from which to hang the swing. Now Virgil is all about involving his kids and teaching as he goes. So he involved his 2 sons in the building of the swing. They are 40 years older now, but they have clear memories of building the swing and learning to use the saws and sanding and painting and bending the metal. One of those sons was my husband, Emma’s father.

The original paint job on the swing was red. There was something about painting redwood red with a special sealer that Virgil was compelled to do for years……and the frame was green. Now this swing sat on great grandma’s porch until her death. It was loved and used for silent contemplation and good visits and everything in between. When Fawn passed on Virgil reacquired the swing and it sat on his porch for years. As the years passed the swing was touched up and cared for, but as with all wood, the sun and elements take their toll. It became a little sad looking, a little harder not to get a splinter when sitting on it, age is hard on all of us.

Then along came Emma, from the time she could walk she loved that swing! She loved it when grandpa would sit outside on the swing with her and tell her about his life. She loved that it belonged to her great grandmother, though she had never met her. She would leave a family dinner right in the middle just to go out and sit in the swing. She began calling it her swing and pretty soon she had everyone convinced that it was her swing. Grandpa began telling people that the swing belonged to Emma and no one was to fight about it. Then Emma starts planning a wedding! She’s not very traditional, she doesn’t want a receiving line or even a cake! But she’s going to wear her grandmothers wedding dress that her great grandmother Fawn sewed for her, and she wants to sit on her swing. Well why not? It’s her wedding, we want her to be happy, so grandpa swung into action.

The swing was sanded, some pieces had to be replaced, it was totally refinished and repainted, frame and all. Grandpa Virgil told his little Emma it would have been easier to build a new one than go to all the work of redoing the old one. Emma just replied, “I know, but then it wouldn’t be great grandma’s swing built by grandpa and daddy.” So after wiping a sentimental tear or two, he went back to work on the swing. Emma helped a bit, but not near as much as she planned to and very soon the swing was back in action and looking better than ever.

Now the swing is yellow and has a blue frame. It’s construction is sound, its paint job is beautiful and there is no risk of slivers when you sit! I love that she loves the swing. I love that she is using it in her wedding. I love that she feels her wedding is about family and she’s surrounding herself with things that mean family to her.

Virgil and his sons built several swings after the first one. It earned a little money as they sold each one, it allowed father and sons to work together, it built memories. But the first swing is the only one still in the family, the only one being handed down, the only one that has such memories and dreams attached to it.

I think the swing will have lots of new memories attached before long. Time will be spent on the swing between a new husband and wife as they plan and dream together. Perhaps in time a fussy baby will be gently rocked back to sleep on the swing. Songs will be sung, stories told, many a sunset will be watched from the swings new yellow seat. Maybe another father or grandpa will sit and tell the swings story to the next generation. It’s just some strips of wood and some pieces of metal, unless you look a little deeper and hear the stories.