While out on the beach there are two empty chairs that say more than the people who ever sit there.
Jimmy Buffett, Lone Palm, Fruitcakes; UMG recordings, 1994
They’re nothing special – you can pick them up in any hardware store. But without them, would I stay still long enough to notice the big, beautiful world just outside my door? Without a second chair, how would I catch a glimpse of the inner life of the friends, neighbors, and family members who grace my life with their presence?
In Jimmy Buffett’s song, I figured that the empty chairs represented missed opportunities – no one ever sat there. But it could just as easily mean that the chairs themselves speak to what time and vantage point offer us every day: a shared glimpse of the inner and outer worlds we inhabit.
A view, a loving other, and an awareness of their value. For these valuable things, I thank you, God.
Pam and I joke that while we’ve seen two Adirondack chairs in countless lovely settings…we’ve never seen anyone sitting in them! But you’re right–there is a kind of easy personification–the arms, the legs, the back–and it’s easy to imagine a conversation between the two Adirondacks.
Why is that – the empty Adirondacks at beaches, on hills, in gardens? They are photogenic empty, but better if they foster life and fulfill their chair destinies! Thanks, David. Peace, Johnna