Office Redecoration — By Tommy Purser

I think I’m due for an office redecoration.
The things I have hanging on the walls of my office and displayed on the shelves of a cabinet in my office haven’t been changed in decades.
The cabinet, by the way, is built of walnut. Not just any walnut, but boards hewned from a huge walnut tree my late father had delivered to him by a friend of his who made his living in the woods as a logger. Just before his death more than 35 years ago, my father had taken up woodworking. He told his logger friend that, if he happened to run across a walnut tree in the northeast North Carolina or southern Virginia woods where he worked, he’d like to have it. Not much later, his friend pulled up to his house with a walnut tree. Dad took the tree to a lumber mill where he had it cut into boards. At the time of his death, those walnut boards were still drying at his house, not yet dry enough to work with.
Somewhat of a woodworking buff myself, I loaded up those boards on my late father’s double axle trailer, hooked up the trailer to my late father’s double axle truck, and transported them some nine hours south to Jeff Davis County. I stacked them in my backyard to complete the drying process and, when ready, carried them to a local craftsman and had a heirloom-worthy walnut cabinet made for my office.
But I digress. Back to the things on display in my office.
I have a large, framed, pastel portrait of my father dressed in his World War II Navy uniform. That drawing was done by my father’s double-first cousin shortly after his death, as I said, more than 35 years ago.
I have a black, plaster cast I wore on my right arm when I went to the primary school years ago to read to students there. Before leaving, I had all the children in the class sign my cast. Today, those children are grown and many of them have children who today are older than their parents were when I read to them many years ago.
I have a yellow Spalding basketball, the first basketball I ever owned. My father bought it for me when I was still in my preteen years. That was some 67 years ago.
I have my children’s senior photographs displayed on those shelves. Today, I have grandchildren older than their parents — my children — were when those photographs were taken.
I have on those shelves a few gag gifts given to me when I turned 50, more than a quarter of a century ago.
I have a photograph of me taken when I spoke to the Statesboro Rotary Club the year I was president of the Georgia Press Association. Again, more than a quarter of a century ago.
I have various plaques and photos awarded to me in appreciation of my coaching youth sports teams when my children were playing.
I have a photograph taken of me and my first two grandchildren during an Easter egg hunt. In the photo, my granddaughter appears to be too young to walk. To illustrate how long ago that photo was taken, consider that my granddaughter’s wedding is scheduled for next May. My oldest grandchild, also pictured in that photograph, is scheduled to tie the knot the following November.
Yes, it’s time to redecorate.