Sold!

My mother called us yesterday to tell us they'd sold their house.  This was not unexpected; they've been planning on moving for several years now, and--despite the market--now was the time.  By the fall, they'll be living in Boston, and will be a more visible part of our daily lives. My childhood best friend was the one who made the sale.

I think that the sale is understandably bittersweet. Looking forward, I'm excited they will be a natural part of my son's life, in the same way my grandmother was a natural part of mine. Looking backwards, I'm nostalgic about both the physical space of the house I grew up in and the community of places and people in which it resides. 

My mother's family had a summer cottage in Lake Hopatcong in Sussex County, NJ. It wasn't much, space wise, but it seemed that every other story she told about her youth took place there. I asked her to describe it to me once, and she was able to paint a vivid mental picture of the layout and decoration. It was imprinted in her memory.

In my mind, the house in White Meadow Lake is apart from time. It exists as it did when I was both 5 and 15, including toys on the floor and CD packaging on the walls. I'll miss the physical space, but these images are mine to keep.