Our house, in the middle of the street. Have you ever gone back to your childhood home--especially one that you haven't lived in a decade or more? I did. For the first time in about seven years, I took a trip back to Virginia and one of my top priorities was to drive by my old house, snap a photo (pictured here), and then go out for a drink and have a good laugh over it. Instead, I found myself standing on the porch with my finger pressing the doorbell.
I really expected time to stand still, or at least fall back to older memories, etc etc, with like, say, Cindy Lauper's "Time After Time" crooning softly in the background. But no, it didn't work like that: you see, it was inevitable that the house would be remodeled, upgraded, and polished. The kitchen was completely made over, the bathrooms gutted, the utility room removed completely to expand the den...those bits were good. The bad? Our beautiful slate floors and replaced with carpet (yes, we had slate floors--an odd choice, but we loved it), and the double-height ceiling in the den was lowered, covering up the weight-bearing wood beams (which, by the way, was a huge selling point for me when I was house-hunting in California).
But perhaps what's really made the experience of revisiting my old home stew in my mind is that after we walked through and saw all the changes, I felt a bit funny: I was a stranger in my old home that had been remodeled away, covered over with bad low-pile carpet beyond the point of recognition. Afterwards, I showed the photos of the house to my mum who loved that house so much, and all she said was, "Well, at least we were the last ones to live in our house."
It sounded redundant, but it was a bit heartbreaking too.
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
Yay, a fellow Virginian! What area are you from?
view komori's profile
I've always wanted to go back and visit my old house. Maybe someday.
view sarahduckie's profile
You can't go back.
Been there, couldn't do that.
view momma's profile
Komori, I'm from Virginia Beach! Where are you from?
view grace's profile
my brother-in-law visited his childhood home a few months ago, (in Portsmouth, VA) and the current owners permitted him to take some photos with my six-year-old niece in front of the tree he planted when he was 10 (big gardening fiend), put them in a double frame, now his favorite photo of hundreds of Fran.
view carolynapplebee's profile
My parents still live in my childhood home, and they have just undergone a major renovation. It broke my heart when they decided to replace the polished slate in their foyer. Luckily, the beams in their vaulted living room remain intact!
view hwtm's profile
I had an old high school friend find me on myspace and he proceeded to tell me how the house I grew up in was torn down and replaced with a hideous McMansion that stretches to every edge of the property lines. I don't think I need to see that or meet the people responsible for it.
view anyimage's profile
i have to say, my mother's still there and the childhood home is exactly the same -- few changes and much worn in. the childhood block however has gone from funky ny west village to THE street to live on -- hot restaurant on the corner, celebs snatching up the neighboring brownstones. whatever changes though, i will always think of it as my block and i can still walk the length of it with my eyes closed (i know, i tried it when i was there a month ago)
view abby's profile
Grace, I'm from Roanoke. I still go back every year for the holidays. But I guess it helps that my house has barely changed -- my room is still in its 1998 senior year of high school state!
view komori's profile