The first time I saw it when I was a child Aunt Sarah let me sit on the chair made of antler horns that was in her living room. It was hard and uncomfortable so I had no desire to sit in the chair again but it burned itself into my memory. It's gone now but I can still see that majestic old chair in the pictures of my mind.

When my daughters were little they too were captivated by the antler chair and sat in it. My six foot husband, a hunter, was fascinated by it. He remembered it as taking up a good part of the wall and as being as tall as him

The antlers came from Elk after they shed them as they did each year after mating season. There were around 12 of them fastened together with carriage bolts and bands attached to a seat platform. It was a real work of art and was the first thing a person noticed when they went into Aunt Sarah's little white house on First Street in La Junta.

"My father and brothers built this chair," Aunt Sarah told us as she rubbed her hand lovingly over the old chair. "It was a surprise for Mama, but they had a hard time keeping it a secret. Money was always scarce so our gifts were mostly homemade. We didn't buy much but we tried to make nice things for each other whenever a special occasion came up.

Sometimes Mama talked about the pretty chair her mother had given her in Tennessee and she looked sad when she told about how there wasn't room in the wagon to bring that chair when they came to Colorado.

'It was a fine chair,' Mama would say as she looked at the wall in the front room. 'It would have fit right in that space, but we had too many young ones in the wagon. There wasn't room for luxuries such as fancy chairs.'

'Some day,' Papa promised, 'you'll have another chair.'

But Mama knew that there just never was enough money left over to buy such a nice chair as she had left behind. Mother worked so hard and did so much for others that father tried to think of something special for her.

Father and the boys liked to hunt. The meat gave us more variety and our food supply stretched longer. They took the wagon and went to the mountains once in awhile so they could haul back the game they shot. I never wanted to go with them. I didn't mind eating the meat, but that didn't mean I wanted to see them shoot some poor deer or elk.

One morning Father and my brothers all went to the mountains to go hunting. When they got home that evening they were acting very secretive. I didn't go out to the barn until the next day so I didn't know about what was hidden in the hay until I went to do chores. It was all very strange, I could see something under the hay so I started digging to see what it was. Oscar came in about that time.

"Stop that," he yelled.

'Stop what?' I was puzzled.

'Don't take the hay off the antlers,' he said.

'Antlers?' I asked. 'Where'd you get antlers?'

'Up in the mountains,' Oscar said. 'The Elk had shed them and there were a whole bunch just layin' around. Papa come up with an idea and we picked up a bunch.'

'Well, what are you gonna do with them?' I asked curiously.

'Be quiet,' Oscar shushed me. 'It's going to be a surprise for Mama.'

'A surprise?' Surprises were exciting around our house so I was real curious now. 'What is it?'

'You promise not to tell?' He looked over his shoulder towards the house.

'I promise,' I crossed my heart.

'Us guys are going to build Mama a chair,' he said.

'Out of antlers?' I snorted. I was sure Oscar was crazy. Who could build a chair out of antler horns? Such a thing was unheard of. 'You can't make a chair out of antlers.'

'Sure you can,' he said.

'Did Papa say so?' I asked scratching my head and trying to figure out how they were going to do that.

'Of course,' he said. 'Now stop digging.' He pulled more hay over the antlers.

In the next few weeks I discovered that antlers could make a chair and I watched my Father and my brothers put those antlers together so it would form a chair, a good one too. Whenever chores were being done the boys and father took an extra long time as they carefully built that grand chair. They didn't have a lot of time but since I had several brothers they took turns. They let me help too. They screwed bolts into the antlers and fit bands around them. We had to all watch out and keep Mama out of the barn. She seemed suspicious.

'Land sakes,' she said. 'Either you all are taking longer to do chores these days or I'm learnin' to breeze through my tasks. I'll just come in and give you a hand.'

'No, no,' Father would say, 'We'll be done in a jiffy. You tend to your mendin'.

It was exciting and I could hardly wait to see how surprised Mama would be when she saw that chair.

Finally the handsome chair was done and Father suggested that Mother invite the whole family over to dinner one evening. She was willing to fix a meal for all of the family, even though she couldn't understand why he all of a sudden was so interested in having everyone over. He wanted the whole brood to see the big surprise we had been working on. That evening when everyone got there the boys went to the barn and carried the antler chair into the house. They set it against the wall in the front room.

Mama was in the kitchen. She was finishing the meal. The whole family was there, Doc and Amanda and their boys, Laura and Charlie and their young ones, so Mama was busy. She had been cooking all day and she was getting a might put out with me.

'I declare Sadie,' she said as I came into the good smelling room. 'Why do you keep disappearing? You know I need your help more than ever since everyone is here.'

'I'm sorry Mama.' I had to squeeze my mouth together real tight to keep from laughing.

'Well, help me get the bowls on the table.' Mama sighed, she looked tired and hot.

I picked up a bowl and followed her into the front room. We put the food on the table.

Everyone was standing around the big antler chair, so I ran over and joined the rest of the family.

'Surprise,' we shouted.

Mama looked at that chair and her mouth dropped open.

'A chair. Where did it come from?' she asked Father.

'We built it,' Father answered.

'Well, I never --' Mama said and she sat down on the bench by the table. I was waiting for her to run over and sit in that wonderful chair made of antlers but she didn't. She just sat and stared at it. Then she threw her hands up to her face and did something surprising, she started crying.

Didn't she like it? Maybe it wasn't as good as the chair she'd left behind back in Tennessee.

'Don't you like it?' I asked.

'Oh, Sadie.' Mama uncovered her face and smiled. 'Of course I like it. It's the best looking chair I ever saw in my life.'

She went to the chair and ran her hand over the antlers.

'It's made of elk antlers,' she said as she admired it. 'It's just grand.'

'Do you think it's as nice as the one you left in Tennessee?' Papa asked anxiously.

'Oh, my yes,' she said. 'It's way nicer. You scoundrels, now I know why you took so long to do your chores.'

Everyone started talking at once and telling her all about building it. By the time we got to eat, the food was getting cold but Mama didn't seem to mind at all. She wasn't near as tired looking now, she was all smiles.

That chair was never very comfortable, but Mama loved it and she sat in it often. No one ever came in the house but what Mama told them the story of how surprised she was when Father and the boys made that chair for her. I was proud of it too because I helped build it."

Aunt Sarah sighed and ran her hand over the old antler chair.