The Story Of The House

Sitting in this big , old house. Pondering what once was. Pondering the history. Imagining the young excited couple decorating their new home. A baby on the way.

Love in the air. Hope of a bright future for all of them. But then disaster, a miscarriage. An affair. All dreams crushed in an instant.

Crying in the big garden in despair. The dreams for herself and her children, now a distant memory. A fantasy that never came to bare. A fantasy that fluttered away in the wind.

Now left alone and heart broken. Comforted only by her tears or self-pity and sorrow.

But then one day, a stranger arrives to meet with her husband. They lock eyes for the briefest of moments but it is enough to spark a glimmer of hope.

A glimmer of a future once more. A way out of her trap. She vows to find who he is, will he be back. When will he be back. She imagines being able to steal a moment with him.

She will only need the briefest of moments to light the spark that she knows lives within both of them. She wants him to know she is available for stealing. She is unhappy and sad.

This new glimmer of hope renews her energy. She sheds her sadness and busies herself around the house. Working the garden to create a magnificent thing of beauty.

They hold parties and people come from far and wide but the man does not return. Not yet. She holds hold. She plays the dutiful wife but her heart is with another.

Another pregnancy. Not out of love but necessity. This time a child is born. He is sickly and weak. This is not the joy she wanted or expected.

She is fraught with concern. Her husband disinterested. He flaunts his affairs, barely bothering to hide them. But her child pulls through. He too gives her hope.

They play and frolic by the nearby sea. She loves the sea breeze in her face and hair. She imagines swimming out forever. Becoming a mermaid and disappearing beneath the waves to live a new and wonderous life.

But she is not a mermaid for she can barely swim. She will indeed sink beneath the waves to never return. But it will be a painful and fruitless death. Not one of joy and happiness.

She grows detached from her child. But she has another, a girl. She is beautiful and wonderous. Her heart lights up. Finally she smiles. Her love renewed. Joy returns into her life.

She feels renewed and strong once more. The man returns that she had given up on. She is confused by her feelings and thoughts. She ignores him.

Her daughter is her life now. But this man pursues her this time. She gives in and he takes her. But instead of love, there is shame and disappointment.

He was not her saviour. Her dreams are once more dashed. But her daughter gives her strength. She becomes fierce and protective. Angry.

She rules the household with an iron fist. She becomes sneaky and devious. Getting rid of any of her husband's lovers.

But hard times befall them and they have to sell the house. They have to move to another, much smaller and less grand one. The house ponders on its new occupants.

An elderly couple. Old money. But not love. The house is sad for all she wants is children playing and frolicking in her rooms, parties in her gardens and love in the air.

But that time will come. The house will endure always. A hotel is born and couples in love come and go.

Her gardens remain lush and beautiful, welcoming new guests from far afield. This will do nicely.