Travel desk

My daughter got rid of the desk I made her nearly 30 years ago, and was almost afraid to tell me.

Being familiar with woodworkers, Courtney is familiar with the feelings we develop for things we’ve made. As such, she was a bit nervous telling me she replaced the desk I built her when she was around 10. To be honest, I’m surprised she didn’t do it years earlier. Let’s face it, an adult has different needs in a desk than one made for a child, so she got a standard grown-up desk with mostly drawers.

The one I made was much simpler. It was basically a platform top bridging two end cabinets, and was designed to easily knock down. One cabinet had a door and internal shelves, the other a single drawer and an open space below for a computer case.

I wasn’t my fanciest work, but it got the job done and held up well to anything a 10-year-old could do to it. The layout made it easy for a kid to work at and plus store toys and things, so doors and shelves were the way to go then. Growing up, she made that desk work for many useful years, right into adulthood. Now, she’s a college professor, and they need lots of drawers. (It’s in their contracts, I think.)

That desk I made her was old, efficient and extremely well used, so it lived a good life. And while she’s moved on to a different desk, the old one will see a new life. She gave it to a realtor friend of hers who plans to use it to stage homes. The knockdown design makes it perfect for that.

So, while I’m always nostalgic for things I’ve made – especially for my daughter – I understand that her needs today are different from when I made that desk so long ago. And it pleases me thoroughly that the old desk isn’t really being put out to pasture, and will continue to serve a useful purpose in a different setting.