old and forgotten

I enjoy looking at old, dilapidated houses. I seem to favor the old farm houses. My imagination will soar as I wonder about the life that was lived inside.

The families probably had several children. There was cooking and cleaning and playing and working and resting and sleeping and learning. They had crops to plant and vegetable gardens. There were cows and chickens and pigs to be fed. Farm life could be hard. The boys would help with the animals and fish from the nearby pond. Girls would learn how to cook and to sew.


I wonder if the kids played hopscotch and red rover and freeze tag and jump rope and dodge ball and marbles. The grownups may have played checkers, but probably enjoyed spinning a tale that mesmerized the children. Families were close, and often visited with each other. They went to church on Sundays.

Thru the seasons, from Spring to Summer, were very busy times. Then the harvest of Autumn lead to Thanksgiving. That was a time when everyone came together. Grandparents, uncles and aunts, and cousins. It was a wonderful time to be together. Then Winter ushered in the celebration of Christmas. It was a simpler time. The stockings held oranges and nuts. The gifts were simple, often handmade. The most important thing was Jesus.

These old houses once breathed life....................