A House..A Home.

My Dears,

I find myself in quite the contemplative mood of late. I think of my yesterday, my now, and my tomorrow. Actually, been thinking a lot about my tomorrows.

Have I ever told you the story about how I came to be in Harmonie House? Okay, I'll tell you, and will try to make it brief...really, I'll try.

My late husband and I were at an open house directly across the street from Harmonie. The house we were touring was much larger, and the previous owners had let some of it fall into disrepair. However, there was still lots of beauty and its 1916 character was still intact. Restoration itself would have been minimal but still monumental to an extent. It was tempting, but my husband and I knew that it would cost quite a bit to repair, replace, and restore.

So we walked out the front door and bumped into a nearby neighbor who said, and I quote, "Oh my dears, this house is too large for just the two of you. The one across the street would have suited better, but it was recently purchased by a couple and their sons."
I looked across the street..my true first glimpse of what was to become Harmonie House. I sighed and shrugged indifferently. We thanked her and left.

Funny thing was, that somehow, the image of Harmonie stayed with me. Every time we passed it on our way to the nearest highway, I would ask the Mr. to slow down so that I could take a look at it. ..and so it happened it would become the thing to do whenever we drove by. At Christmastime I'd take great pains to look at their tree by the window and wondered what the rest of the house would be like. That's what it was like for about about 2 years.

Then one day, my husband came home and told me the house I liked so much was for sale. My heart skipped a beat, but then plummeted just as quickly, for we had just recently renovated the apartment we were living in at the time, and I knew buying a house was not in the cards.

Fate stepped in however in the form of a break-in..not in my apartment, but in the one next to us where we kept some storage..including my fine wedding china. Yes my dears, my china was stolen..and I felt afraid, violated, and ever so uncomfortable in my sweet little abode.

I told hubby it wouldn't hurt to look at the house..just to sate our curiosity after all this time. Knowing how much it would mean to me, and to cheer me after the hubub with the break-in, he agreed. I scheduled a meeting with the owners..they didn't have it listed with a real estate broker. I was so nervous. I wanted to love it but by the same token, I didn't want to. I knew my husband wasn't going to want a house when we lived in a perfectly lovely and new apartment. Why get my hopes up?

Walking up the front steps, I felt a pull..a nervous energy, and a deep excitement. When the owner opened the door she let us in through a small, tiled vestibule and into the open, large living room area. My heart seem to lodge in my throat. I knew from the instant I stepped inside that something had changed that very moment..my life was already affected. I was home.

All right...I said I would keep it short, so I guess I aught to stop now. After all, you know the rest of the story. I live in my Shangri-La...Harmonie House. There is much more to tell. It really is somewhat of a love affair..a coming home of sorts. Tis a story I would love to write about some day. The laughter, tears, hopes, and dreams held within these walls throughout the years are an extension of not only myself, but of those who have loved this home before me.

*sigh* Told you I was in a contemplative mood. Though life can seem a bit controlling at times and tries to take the upper hand with difficult situations, I sit myself down and know that all will be fine. I've encountered loss in the past and I have climbed out of its despair. I smile today because of my yesterdays...I'm hopeful for my tomorrows..and blissful because of now. I'm blessed and grateful.

xoxo
Miss Sandra