I never really thought much about all the places I have lived, until just recently. I was born in a rural area of Pennsylvania to a family of 4 brothers, Mom and Dad. I lived in 2 homes there, the first built by my father after WWII. It was a one room previous barber shop that he bought and built on to and continued to build on to as his family grew. The second was a dream home for my mother that my father built for her on a hill overlooking a beautiful valley. I was 10 years old and sadly, the company my father worked for did not survive and he was force to make a move with his family. He had a friend who wanted to build a hotel in the Florida Keys, so off we went, all but one of us (my oldest brother had taken the plunge and married his high school sweetheart). I lived on the Florida Keys until I graduated high school. I will not bore you with the reasons why, but I did marry young and started a life of moving around due to being a military spouse. I have lived in Alaska, Ohio, Florida, North Carolina, Kentucky, Texas, Sicily and a few more that just have not come to mind as yet. I have fond memories of them all, but I think the first 10 years were my favorite and the two homes my father built will forever make me yearn to go back. Back to when all of my brothers and I were under one roof with the love of two hard working parents.
You've got a nice story there worth showing the young, granchildren maybe. I can imagine the little house on the prairie upon reading about your second house that was built on a hill overlooking a valley. It is like a place in a fairy tale. Maybe you had a wonderful time being a 10-year old playing in that place with green grass and fresh air. I'm also amused with that line that you had lived in Alaska. The mere mention of that place gives me the shiver because I grew up with the image of Alaska as a place with snow and ice all year round. It was only lately when I learned that summers in Alaska is like an ordinary summer in a temperate zone where some places are cool, with no ice nor snow. I was born and raised in an apartment, right there in the city of Makati, now the business hub of the country. You can imagine that I hadn't seen big trees, gardens and other fixtures you find in a rural area.
Even though time changes the landscape, memories remain. Have you ever gone back to visit those two homes that your father built? I like to visit the places of my past and take pictures. Speaking of all the regions that you have lived in as an adult, I am certain these experiences have made you a more worldly person. Although, I can relate to how hard it is to pack up and leave so many times.
I love to think back on my childhood and remember happy times with my parents. I was born in a small town called Calne, England, UK. My father was a policeman in the county of Wiltshire and was posted a few times so we moved around three or four times until I was 12 when we settled in a town called Devizes. I have very fond memories of this town as most of my growing up was done here and as I now live around 13 miles away I still visit whenever I can. Both my parents have passed away now, my mum very recently, but no one can take those memories away and I think back very fondly to the times when mum, dad, my sister and myself all lived together. It doesn't matter where we lived because home is where the heart is and my heart was always with them.
Most of each day I spend back in memory land. Many of my favorite haunts are forever changed. Most of my friends are gone. So is my youth and health. But, when I'm not dreaming of the past, I'm online happily doing my best to ruin the day for liberals.
Home is where the heart is. Home where you grew up has lots of nice memories. The things we could do when we were younger we surely can't do now. We'll always have the memories of time gone by. Today at our age we can't go back to the days of youth, like you we have our memories that we can enjoy. If you took pictures you can visit the past with them too. I like to go and see pictures of people now gone forever and reminisce of days gone by too. Things were so nice when you were young because we did not have the pressure and worries of being an adult. Good to look back sometimes. Today is pretty good too!
The key is feeling young at heart; I am 55 years old now and I'm thankful to have been here saying it out loud, but deep inside of me I might be only 18 because I still think, feel and do many of the things I used to do then, some of which I can now see like to be insensate but yet desirable to repeat, or being wise enough to avoid repeating. As for this There are times when it is better keep in one's heart the fond memories of the days that have gone that stepping back to find what is left of those days we loved so much. I was born in a poor neighborhood in this capital city, where I grew up happy and not really understanding of limitations because my dad worked hard to give us a luxury life indoor that contrasted with the surrounding outdoor poverty. I was immensely happy there and I can only remember my parents loving each other. However when my grandmother passed away, we were literally abducted from that impoverish setting to a luxurious mansion in an exclusive zone in the city, house where my mom still lives. With this move, my heart was left behind in the poor neighborhood I was raised, and the hunch I had when I first stepped into the mansion --- which I had already visited when my grandma was alive -- turned real; I was never as happy as I was in my former home and my parents began to be apart each other day after day since. Overtime, and being an adult, I returned to the neighborhood my heart was left, but nothing of what I could remember was there; everything had gone including the magic that I would have to leave untouched simply as cherished memory because like @Ike Willis says, everything changed since, but I don't longer dream on the past, I prefer to stay online and doing my job debunking false idols including Google, Wordpress and the Sucker-berg behind Facebook
First laugh of the day goes to you, Ike. "I'm online happily doing my best to ruin the day for for liberals." You could have ended this phrase just as easily with a conservative or anything else. Just gave me a healthy chuckle. Anyways, as long as, we still have our memories (and sense of humor) to think back upon, all is well.
As I was reading, you reminded me of the family favorite and loved book series, Grandmother's Attic by Arleta Richardson. The stories told there come alive as you read, laugh and cry all at the same time. Delightful childhood memories you might want to author and share to many in a book series, @Lilly Smith ?