The Forgotten Old House

That spooky looking old house, all worn, weathered and beaten, frightens me. It's so creaky and dilapidated and looks like it could be haunted. It's dark, hollowed out windows stare back at me like the eyeless sockets of a skull. One day, I actually braved myself to walk up to it. The wind whistled thru the rotting old wood and it made the little house moan. It didn't just moan, but rather it told me something...'As hard as it is to believe now, once I was a thing of beauty. A happy family was very proud to call me their home.

I saw several generations of new babies welcomed home, and so many happy occasions were celebrated in my walls: Christmases, birthdays, anniversaries, and so many more. Once a happy young couple was married inside of me, and I saw all of their children grow up. So many cherished memories, hardships, laughter and tears have all been shared and had inside my walls. I was once so beautifully decorated inside and out. The lady of the house always took great pride in me, and I was the castle of the man of the house. Parties were hosted very often in my prime, and I welcomed so many friends and neighbors for good times.

Of course, this was all a very, very long time ago, way before your time. But look at me now. Decades have come and gone and I have been forgotten and abused. The hoodlum teenagers have pelted me with rocks, and the vandals have defaced my once beautiful walls with garish grafitti. I ask myself everyday what did I do to deserve such a cruel fate? Nothing you see, for generations come and go, and things never stay the same. The elderly couple that lived in me last has long since passed on, and their children grew up and moved away to bigger and better things. I was no longer needed. But please, do not fear me. For I too was once loved and adored such as you yourself are everyday of your life. Never take anyone or anything for granted. Time marches on and we all grow old, but love that is shared lasts forever...' I stood in absolute silence and awe. A single tear trickled down my cheek as I thought of the old house in its splendor. Yes, this forgotten ruin was at one time someone's childhood home, a home for the holidays, Grandma's house, and a place to feel safe.

I looked directly into the house's hollowed out windows and replied: 'No one will ever forget you. You have a place in someone's heart somewhere whether you realize it or not, and you have a place in mine. Right at this moment, you made me aware of all the forgotten memories in our midst. So many stories to be told and shared if we would just stop and listen and throw away our fears.' As I turned to walk away, I caught a glimpse of the bright orange lettering on the rickety old door which read 'CONDEMNED: IMPLOSION SCHEDULED...' I closed my eyes and walked back home.

The End.