For most of my adult life we had one set of silverware. When Mike and I married, his mother gave us a twelve setting set of Reed and Barton stainless in a simple traditional pattern. I loved it... it was really nice quality and we have used it ever since. When we were young we didn't even think of asking for silver...plate or sterling. It was so expensive and so impractical for impoverished newlyweds. I was really grateful to have a complete set of nice stainless and I think of my dear mother-in-law so often when I use it.
After she died (a huge loss for our family) Mike's dad gave me the sterling she had received from her grandmother. Her last name was Woodhouse, so when Mary (Mike's mom) married Jack Webb, Grandmother gave her the sterling because it was monogrammed with a W. The knives are pearl handled, and the spoons and forks don''t match each other. There aren't any salad forks or soup spoons or any serving pieces....just twelve knives, twelve spoons and twelve forks with very long tines. It is so old and so pretty I have used it to set my special tables with pleasure for over twenty years now.
Suddenly, lately, silverware has appeared in droves...and boxes. Last year some friends gave us a very contemporary set of stainless which added a new dimension to my tablesetting vocabulary. It is way bigger than the other patterns, but it is very well balanced and comfortable in the hand. It's great for more casual settings and occasions.
Last week, Mike's brother brought two more boxes of silverware.... the stainless that was used every day in his mother's house (also contemporary...kind of Danish) and the silverplate that was her "good" silverware before she inherited her grandmother's sterling. Both are kept in boxes and include many serving pieces. Both have salad forks,and soup spoons. The silverplate is also engraved with W's. All of it has been used and used and used. The plate is honeycombed with the scratches that accumulated over many years of holiday meals. The stainless is the same set we always used when we visited Mike's parents. I have set many tables with it.
So now I am swimming in silverware. Most of it carries a load of family history and memories.and won't be shed lightly. In this time of my life though, I don't need to keep things I don't use. We shall see.
It's funny how stuff accumulates, often laden with obligation and history. Also, for me, possibilities.Again, we shall see.