Home Again, Home Again
Home was tucked between fields planted with corn or sometimes soybeans. Go-carts, dirt bikes, and BB guns. Cows mooing in the distance and naked feet run through fields and managing to miss most all of the cow piles. There were apple trees along the drive and rotten apples to pelt both the unsuspecting and the deserving. There was always the smell of gasoline and engine oil from a newly repaired engine and dust from a freshly driven road. We never did slow down. What would have been the fun?
Home was also tucked between two rivers. One tasted like salt and seaweed. The other like dirt. I swam both long before my memory can remember. I learned about love and war on their shores. Oyster shells make good bombs, unless you hurt someone. Crab pots make good forts, unless you fall on them. The sand is cold, damp and uncomfortable, unless you’re in love.
At home, big trees grew smaller as I grew taller. Grannies kitchen always had treats. A bottle of Coke tasted good even if I had to share. Green garden snakes became monstrous demons and spiders wove deadly webs between the corn. We weren’t scared. Or so we said. We had the dog and a stick to protect us. He always led us home to dinner. At the end of a long day it was the only place we wanted to go.
There were grownups that wanted to hear our stories, warm bath before bed and full round of goodnight hugs. I would fall asleep to the sound of crickets and frogs. I didn’t know they were supposed to be annoying until the trees grew too small to climb and bare feet started wearing shoes. Crab pots became work tools and Coke gave way to wine. The boys became lovely demons and girls spun their webs. But we weren’t scared. Or so we said. We had arrogance and pride to protect us. We knew how to get home for dinner. Even if it was the last place we wanted to go. We never once considered we’d miss it.
More people write about a sound, smell, or taste they find comforting or that reminds them of home at the Thinking Homeschooler Project.
That was really nice. Now, I want to go home!
Me too, a little, but I don’t have that home anymore.
It sounds wonderful. Was that in Virginia, too?
Yes. I’ve lived in Virginia my whole life. I use to live in ‘the northern neck’ go east from Richmond until you hit the bay. It was a good place to grow up but I wouln’t want to be there now.