These days it would seem some of us have a lot more time on our hands.
Lately, one of the things that I’ve been enjoying most is sitting in one of the two wooden Adirondack chairs beneath the fir trees in the backyard. I guess I just enjoy the peace and tranquility, as well as the quiet comfort of the warm sun as it filters through the branches. I am content to sit there, alone with my thoughts.
The Adirondack chair, or Muskoka chair as it is sometimes called here in Canada, was designed by one Thomas Lee in 1903. Apparently, Lee was on vacation in Westport, New York, in the heart of the Adirondack Mountains, and needed some patio chairs for his summer cottage. He decided to make some himself and, after testing out a number of designs on his family, finally settled on what has become the basic design for what is now known as the Adirondack chair.
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Over the years I have spent many an hour sitting in an Adirondack chair and watched many a cloud drift by. I have listened to birds singing in the trees and pondered what is important and what is not. I have thrown the ball for my dog and smiled at the audacity of a magpie that swooped down into the yard with no other intent on its mind than to pester the dog. I have watched seasons change and the leaves turn colour. I have watched flocks of ducks and geese wing their way south. In the spring, I have sat and watched their return.
On many a summer’s day I have squandered many an hour that could have been spent cutting the lawn or putting a fresh coat of paint on something that needed sprucing up. Oddly enough, I don’t really regret any of that time, for each and every hour spent sitting back in my Adirondack chairs has given me special satisfaction. As a matter of fact, now that I have written my column, I think I’ll go out to the backyard, sit back and have a rest.