wrote in message

But here's the best part of the story. My father-in-law is still
living. My wife invited him and his two sisters to our house to
celebrate the birthday of one of the sisters. (These folks are all in
their 80's now.) When my father-in-law looked into the dining room, he
gasped ... and tears came to his eyes. He and his sisters then got to
have a birthday party around the same table where they sat when they
were children.

Great story! I'll bet the old guy is often thinking of that table and the
time you took to repair it.