“ Let all things be done decently and in order.” — 1 Corinthians 14:40

We didn’t sign up for wedding china.

My beloved and I thought ourselves too practical to request such a frivolous gift. Sturdy everyday china would be just fine with us, we said, until a great-aunt complained loudly to my mother. Grudgingly we registered for fancy dishes, crystal, and silverware. We drew the line at silver, but the attorney I worked for gave us a pretty silver tray anyway. From our wedding registry we received one plate and one serving spoon..

Twelve years later, we came across a lovely place setting of china at a going-out-of-business sale. After a steady diet of meals on sturdy but mismatched dishes, we finally had an appetite for something nicer — at least some of the time.

Not only did we buy that place setting, we tracked down enough place settings and extra serving pieces to set a lovely table for our growing family on special occasions.

And so began our family tradition of “Good China Dinners.”

Every holiday we set the table as beautifully as we dared with so many small children: a lace tablecloth, crystal goblets, fine china, as many matching sets of silverware as we could dig out of the sandbox.

Our kids would be caught between solemnity and smiles as they realized this was just for them. They came to the table with clean faces and hands, without being asked. They said “please” and “thank you,” while practicing polite conversation. They lingered after dessert, just to visit with us.

“Food just tastes different when you use these dishes,” one of them told me.

Who knew a little china could make such a difference?

Of course, it’s more than the china. A nicely set table is evidence that someone cared enough to take time and trouble to do something well, to create something special for the moment. Fancy china isn’t necessary.

It’s just another way to say “I love you.”

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Holly set the table many times during the just-passed holidays, always with joy at doing something special for the people she loves. You can read more about her adventures at Grandma Holly on Board.

– photo by Holly Schurter