Tag Archive for: travel

This is a handmade mosaic table of the Tree of Life we bought while in Jordan last month. It was made at a mosaic center employing disabled artists. A program created by the Queen of Jordan trains disabled adults for years to work with mosaics then places them in artist centers to create stunning pieces by hand and with naturally occurring rock colors.

As soon as we heard this description, I knew we were going to buy something there. Then the kicker, all taxes and shipping back home are covered by the Queen. Wow! I thought, then quickly realized that just meant all of that is built into the prices.

My wife Lori called me over saying she loved this table. I said, great, get it. She asked the price, and in my multi-country, currency-confused, vacation high it didn’t really connect with me. I recall it seemed expensive, but was glad to support this place and international travel always makes me realize how fortunate I am. I saw a wall piece depicting Petra that I liked and said we want that too.

Our guide came over to help negotiate a lower price, which was still high, but I was strong with my decision since Lori really liked it. It didn’t hit me until later how much it cost. The entire place seemed very excited we were buying the table. They gave Lori extra gifts of some Dead Sea mud products and sent a big box of cookies to our bus as a thank you.

Regret was quickly building as somehow I heard hundreds when it was actually thousands.

For the rest of the trip, I secretly hoped my credit card would reject it, or the table would be lost in shipping. The table became a symbol of my stupid decisions and short-sightedness. For the rest of the trip, I joked about not buying other things by referencing the world’s most expensive table waiting to join us back home. “The table” became an ominous thing bringing financial ruin and doom.

We were home for two weeks before it arrived.

When it did show up, I felt even more like an idiot. Not only was it the most expensive table I’ve ever owned, but I’m also pretty sure its the most expensive piece of furniture we’ve have ever had. Which may seem outlandish or point to the fact that I’m pretty cheap when it comes to home furnishings.

Yesterday, I was home alone looking at it and decided instead of having this bad joke of a decision haunt me; I was going to forever see this table as a symbol of my wealth and abundance. The Tree of Life always brings more. More growth, more fruits, more fuel. I’m more than worthy of a beautiful, handmade, mosaic table – especially if my wife wants it. 🙂

#reframe #royalty #worthy #TheTable

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