The house feels so much smaller now as
My children have grown into teenagers
And the family room
Where my daughter is busy recreating a plant cell
For a science project,
Is the same room where my son and his girlfriend are sitting down
To watch a movie.
The rooms
House so many memories,
Prebirth
When this little house almost seemed too big
Without children
In it.
Then once they arrived
Almost 4 years apart
The house seemed to embrace them
Inside their rooms with the slanted ceilings
And white paned windows.
Our family room
Not too long ago
Contained a doll house strewn with beautifully dressed princess barbies
And mysteriously decapitated ken dolls.
There was also a large plastic bin full of Lego blocks,
Its lid
behind the box of
Overflowing
random Lego pieces.
Too warped to be able to snap shut snuggly on the rounded corners.
Now a horror movie plays
In that otherwise occupied room
Where styrofoam,
Paint
and my daughter’s science diagram
Are subtle reminders
That date night comes with it’s own conditions
In a home that has suddenly become so small.
J. Hamilton