Tuesday, May 26, 2009

The Grandparents

We just got back from the family camp out at the grandparent's farm. My grandparents have been deceased for 16 and 20 years now. Dad, their oldest child, owns the property now and allows us all to spend Memorial Weekend there. In the mid 1960's my grandparents had moved an old house to their property to use as a garage or "carriage house," as Grandad used to say. The building they would use as a garage/workshop had actually been the childhood home of one of their son-in-laws. Dad and that uncle decided that it was time to bring it down before it fell in on someone, so some demolition work was done during the camp out this year. This is one of the last pictures of the carriage house before it came down. There aren't many structures left on the place. The old barn, that I loved as a kid, came down while my grandparents were alive. Here is one of the out buildings or sheds that still stands.
This was Grandma's chicken house (which isn't in great shape) and out behind it is the pond.
This was the view that Grandma enjoyed from her house, looking out to the creek. It is still as beautiful to me as it was to her.
Sadly, my grandparent's house burned to the ground during the 5th family camp out weekend. The power and light people had been out earlier in the day for some electrical problems. No one lived in the house, but my dad and step mom stored things in it and campers used if for showers and bathroom. At about 2 in the morning, the campers discovered the fire and several crawled through the burning house to make sure family members hadn't decided to sleep inside. No one was injured, but not much was saved. Fifty or so family members were on hand to see our grandparent's home burn to the ground. Faulty wiring in the attic was to blame. (The same problems power and light had been dealing with earlier in the day.)
This is where the house stood. Grandma's untended old fashioned roses bloom on,
as do her iris, peonies and jonquils.

So even if Grandma has been gone for 20 years now, her spirit still hovers at the farm she and Grandad loved.

4 comments:

Heidi said...

Gosh this is so much like the family farm in our family on my husband's side. The house is there, but their barn burned down mysteriously several years back. Too bad, because it was an awesome barn. Gmpa's outbuildings look a lot like the pics of the ones at your place. In fact, Fashionista and Outside the Box went last Friday night to the property to remove the old sheep shed; it was falling down a little too much for the liking of the township officials. Our guys hunt on the property and kids love to go there and ride golf carts on the mowed trails, sleep in the one good shed and run on all that land.
Heidi

Wendy said...

What a story! I love vintage/heirloom flowers and plants. I was on a property a few years ago that hadn't had a home in probably close to 40 years and there were still daffodils coming up in places where you could see the lady of the house hand planted them to look nice in her yard. Sad and wonderful all at the same time.

Puna said...

awwww, her house is gone but her garden stands. That's so nice.

Gayle said...

That is so sweet. Its wonderful that the property still belongs to your family and the stories and memories are not forgotten.