I was welcomed into this world by my very young parents that were very excited and made all sorts of preparations when they realized I was on the way.
My father was busy working on building a sailboat, when my mother told him that she was expecting me. He fast abandoned his initial plan and decided to rather start a new project, building a cradle.
The baby bed was absolutely beautiful and one of a kind. My dad made this his pride and joy. The cradle was build with great planning, he wanted the cradle to be in arms reach of my mother incase I woke up and she needed to rock me back to sleep. She just needed to nudge the cradle and it would gently rock back and forth with no scraping or creaking. My father’s workmanship made and careful planning made that possible.
No where would anybody be able to buy such a great baby bed. My dad included detail that could only be done by someone that loved his work so much. It was not long and I was born. My father must have somehow known that I would not be an easy child. The cradle served as a saving grace during many long sleepless nights. Every day when I needed my nap she would gently put me down in my baby bed. The gentle rocking back and forth was the only thing that could calm me down and make me drift off for some time.
Not only did the cradle serve its purpose for me but for two more siblings to follow. My dad built other matching pieces later but the only matching piece that still exists is a toy chest with my birth date and my name beautifully carved into the surface. I continue to use this as a box with pictures and mementos from my childhood. This beautiful chest is standing in my living room for everyone to see and admire.
Sometimes I wonder what happened to my beautiful baby bed. I am now a parent of two myself and often wished that I could have used that cradle for my own babies. This baby bed had the ability to calm down and comfort any baby that had the privilege of lying in it. Now day’s baby beds are just not built the same way. Baby beds today are being mass produced with whatever material they find economical to use and hopefully flame-retardant. They may be functional but are built to fit in with adult décor but resemble small jail cells for our sweet little ones. I am convinced that the baby beds of today have great safety features, something that may have been lacking in a small way with my little cradle but today’s baby beds certainly lack charm and some magical quality.
We live in a fast paced world today where money always seems to be the focus. No one seems to have the time anymore to build and create solutions for their friends and family.
Creating a lasting solution would bear great testament and would make such a difference. We can all just buy any item off a shelf as a gift but making something by hand remains special. This is a type of gift that will always be cherished and appreciated with memories that will last forever.