Gifts

 

I thought this would be an appropriate post to re-post today.  I’m taking a little blogging break while we do some cosmetic work on our downstairs bathroom.

 

We live in an old Victorian house. Not the gingerbread variety, but the simple farmhouse variety. It was built in 1900, and has seen a lot, and not all good, in those 11 decades. 

When it came on the market a few years ago, we were living quite happily in a 1940 bungalow.  But there was just something about this house that compelled us to take a look. While it had a lot of good things going for it, like wood floors, ornate moulding and French doors, the negative aspects made us say "not for us," and "too much work."

This house was not going to give up so easily, though. It kept forcing its way into our thoughts. We started to think more and more about what we could do to fix it up, and what a really incredible place it could be once again. We began to see that by saving this house, we could save a piece of the history of our town. The house didn't care what our motives were. It simply wanted to be loved, and have owners who didn't  shoot BB’s into the walls, or write on them with markers.  Owners who didn’t park half a dozen cars in the front yard.

As we moved in shortly before Christmas, and began the task of restoration, the house, or maybe the spirits of those who lived here before us, began to thank us.  Our first evening as new residents, an overwhelming aroma of cigar smoke and perfume filled the living room.  Perhaps we were the guests of honor at a small welcoming party, given by a grateful, but unseen host. The following spring, we unearthed a gold wedding ring.  We discovered it buried in the dirt while we were putting in a flower bed. Another time, while cleaning out a pipe, we found a very old dime from 1869.  And most mysteriously-and oddly of all, there was the time when a dishpan full of water was found emptied on its own. Some help with housework?  That would be appreciated!

While having this house is a gift in itself, we wonder what tokens of appreciation it will offer us in the years to come.  In any case, we will continue our labor of love on this place we now call home.