The Potential Through the Rust

 

Most days I feel like this rusty old chair.  

I found it last week in a pile of weeds.  It was turned upside down and half buried in the mess.  I pulled it out and dusted the dirt off, but, as you can see, there is still a lot of rust.  And the paint has faded so much that it's hard to see the original color.  

As I've been trying to figure out what to do with it, I have noticed a few more things.  It's still very sturdy--the legs that support the chair are barely rusted.  The rust on the seat may actually work to my advantage because it's already released the paint--making it easier to re-finish.  And, let's face it--this chair is a classic--almost everybody's grandma had a few of them.

It also brings back memories of my childhood I had forgotten.  Thoughts of sitting in one like it, with my legs swinging back and forth because they were too short to touch the ground, waiting for my grandpa to finish churning the homemade ice cream.  And getting a taste of what hell felt like as I sat on down on a hot summer day, and burned the backs of my legs--forgetting the sun had warmed it to an ungodly temp.  Those red marks lasted a few days!  And while I can't recall the conversations, I remember aunts and uncles and cousins sitting around in these chairs and feeling very safe as a kid with that many adults around.

You may look at this chair and see a hunk of metal that needs to be tossed.  I get it.  It's old and it might be easier to buy a new one that already has a pretty, shiny coat on it. It will take a lot of hard work to get at that rust and paint that's been baked on.

You might look at it and see the beauty in the natural patina--the colors that show through the rust stains.  You may think it just needs a clear coat on it, allowing it to stay the same color, but protecting it from future elements.

Or, you may not see the chair as it it, but what it can be.  The color it can be after it's sanded down, primed and re-painted.  You may envision the perfect spot for it on a porch with a pillow and some other seating around it.  

All three perspectives are true.  

I've gone back and forth on what to do with it for over a week now.  I have easily narrowed it down to the last two--I will NOT be throwing it out.  If you know me, you know I have a *little* bit of hoarding tendencies so this won't surprise you.

As much as I like the patina and kinda camo vibe it's giving off in this moment, I don't think that is the right look for our family right now.  I can envision it on the porch of the girls' house with a chippy farmhouse sign and bright bowl of flowers next to it--a fun spot to sit and watch the sunset while talking on the phone to friends back in Texas.

But here's the thing.  No matter what I do to it, the bones are good.  If I left it as is, it would eventually break down in the weather and become worthless.  It needs some TLC-which will also entail some steel wool and lots of scrubbing.  It might get a little uglier before it gets prettier, but once I get the top coat off and take it down to the metal, I have a new canvas.  

And this chair can literally become almost ANYTHING!

Kinda like you and me.  We can choose to let the effects of the weather (aka all the HARD stuff we've been dealt without our consent) continue to erode us and make us useless.  We can protect ourselves and not change.  Or, we can allow the scrubbing and scraping and become raw...so that we can be made new.  

The possibilities are endless.