Walking on a Saturday morning, out early. The temperature is in the lower 40’s, the sun is shining – the air is crisp and it smells like autumn, save of course the smell of burning leaves. I do miss that!
The sounds I hear are rakes scraping against the concrete as the homeowners get their leaves out to the curb; I hear a cheer erupting from the stadium at Nazareth – Saturday morning means frosh, soph or junior varsity – must have been a touchdown or a great interception. The cheer goes on for a while. The wind is blowing slightly, nothing like this past week. Neighbors are out picking up branches and twigs that blew down from the trees.
Taking a walk in the forest preserve, entering the Salt Creek trail with my dog – amazingly all the sounds of the neighborhood, the traffic are all gone. It is so quiet and peaceful right when you reach the bridge. You can hear the water rushing under the bridge, hear the birds, the ducks splashing. We walked a bit into the woods, my dog stopping every second to sniff some new exciting smell. He gets burs caught in his fur, but the trip is worth it.
As we are heading back, my dog stops in his tracks: there not 50 feet in front of us, is a big buck. He stares, we stare, Mitch doesn’t know what to make of this huge – what is it? he thought – it’s not a squirrel, his favorite prey, must be a dog – the buck seemed to bow his head slightly, then walk softly through the leaves and the brush onto his destination.
As we headed back into the neighborhood, there were two forest preserve employees pulling up in the truck. I mentioned that we had just seen a buck.
“Yeah, that is the eight-pointer – we just saw him on 31st.”
The sights, the sounds, the smells of autumn in La Grange Park.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Homecoming
Last Friday, as I was frantically trying to finish an extremely tedious mailing (I have a mailing service - Alpha Omega) someone rang the doorbell. I figured it was more mail to do. I reluctantly answered the door as the gentleman was walking away from my front door. I noticed that he had a camera in his hand.
"Hi - can I help you?"
"Oh," he said, "I used to live in this house and I thought I would drop by and say hello. The house looks great."
I explained that I was tied up at the moment, otherwise I would certainly invite him in. He nodded, seemed to understand and said well, thanks anyway.
I returned to my dining room table, where I was in the process of stuffing and sealing 3,000 envelopes where my husband was working next to me, helping me. I briefly told him of my conversation and he said, "You should let him in." He had good reason to say what he did: when returning to his grandfather's house in Wheaton with the original plans, upon knocking on the door, hoping to be invited in, the owner said, "Thanks," took the plans and shut the door. So, I thought to myself, he's right. I should invite them in.
I walked to the front door and was able to catch the man and his wife just as they were getting back into their car.
"Folks, if you would like to come in......" I yelled from the front porch.
His face lit up - they came back up onto the porch and walked in the front door. He looked around.
I gave them the tour - the entire house. He told me where he kept his toys (in the bottom drawer of the breakfront in the dining room - his brother kept his toys in the next drawer up) - how they used to hide in the closet beneath the attic stairs that is in the bathroom. He recalled having taken baths in the tub and where the window was - with a slanted roof. The tub is still here, original to the house - it is stamped on the bottom 'December 19, 1908' -
As the couple walked through the house, the man's love of his former home was evident. Though the house has changed a lot through the years, the bones are still the same.
Bob Bowman and his wife Nancy were in town from California for his 50th high school reunion from Lyons Township High School. - Class of 1960. Bob Bowman and his family lived here from 1946 until the mid 1950's. Bowman was four years old at the time and the family moved when he was fourteen years old . This house is still important to him.
"You know," he said as he was walking down the porch steps, "we moved close to here when I was a freshman in high school - just a few blocks away. But that was just a house - this always was home to me."
"Hi - can I help you?"
"Oh," he said, "I used to live in this house and I thought I would drop by and say hello. The house looks great."
I explained that I was tied up at the moment, otherwise I would certainly invite him in. He nodded, seemed to understand and said well, thanks anyway.
I returned to my dining room table, where I was in the process of stuffing and sealing 3,000 envelopes where my husband was working next to me, helping me. I briefly told him of my conversation and he said, "You should let him in." He had good reason to say what he did: when returning to his grandfather's house in Wheaton with the original plans, upon knocking on the door, hoping to be invited in, the owner said, "Thanks," took the plans and shut the door. So, I thought to myself, he's right. I should invite them in.
I walked to the front door and was able to catch the man and his wife just as they were getting back into their car.
"Folks, if you would like to come in......" I yelled from the front porch.
His face lit up - they came back up onto the porch and walked in the front door. He looked around.
I gave them the tour - the entire house. He told me where he kept his toys (in the bottom drawer of the breakfront in the dining room - his brother kept his toys in the next drawer up) - how they used to hide in the closet beneath the attic stairs that is in the bathroom. He recalled having taken baths in the tub and where the window was - with a slanted roof. The tub is still here, original to the house - it is stamped on the bottom 'December 19, 1908' -
As the couple walked through the house, the man's love of his former home was evident. Though the house has changed a lot through the years, the bones are still the same.
Bob Bowman and his wife Nancy were in town from California for his 50th high school reunion from Lyons Township High School. - Class of 1960. Bob Bowman and his family lived here from 1946 until the mid 1950's. Bowman was four years old at the time and the family moved when he was fourteen years old . This house is still important to him.
"You know," he said as he was walking down the porch steps, "we moved close to here when I was a freshman in high school - just a few blocks away. But that was just a house - this always was home to me."
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