Who'll Take the Chair ?

Who’ll Take the Chair?

by Barbara A. Rope

Schoolrooms and restaurants cannot function without them. The banquets in great halls wouldn’t quite be the same if tables had no companions to complete the room. After a good meal it’s good to sit down.
Fun loving, funky, free spirited and cheeky all describe chairs to entice you to buy. Plastic for leisure, ergonomic or stacking, massage machines incorporated within. Contemporary and classic they are all in the catalogues, just choose the one that suits you. After choosing, lie back; it’s good to relax.
I look around the house and see the movable four legged seats with a rest for our backs. After a busy day it’s good to sit down.
The variation is endless, they are designed for living and comfort.
They stand elegant and stylish in each of our homes, chosen for colour and texture, in beech, walnut or oak. Upholstered in materials of our choice
It’s a seat for one person. They began with authority to show who’s in charge. From Caesars to Popes, the chair has evolved. Bedecked and bejewelled with fine metals and pearls, adorned with silk and materials of style. The chair of the Bishop is known by its name, we copy the image and transfer it outside.
A model drapes herself around one and I see beauty and grace.
Photographs make them famous for supporting this scene, a statement of fashion to light up my eyes.
Turn on the radio and slip off your shoes and hear about more chairs, they are making the news. A Sheriff out West has used one before, it helps people so they don’t harm or be harmed. Listen harder, a seatbelt is mentioned for restraint. Turn up the volume and believe what you hear, he’s exporting them to Guantanamo Bay. Not for comfort or style or panache , but for forced feeding prisoners, these metal, movable four legged seats with a rest for the back.
It’s hard to sit down when you think of this chair. The hurt it causes, the pain and despair. The image it brings in my head is abhorrent. I thought we’ve moved on from torture with chairs.