A house, A Home

Grandpa and I were sitting on the steps of the back porch watching grandma hanging clothes when grandpa, out of the blue, had this to say;

"I built this house but that is all it was until your grandmother made it into a home. Some will tell you that home is wherever they hang their hat. Don’t believe them, boy. It is family that turns a house into a home. A furnace will warm a house but it is the warmth of love that fills a home.

The winds of a storm may shake the very foundation of a house but it is the voices of those who live in a home that resonates for years to come. The house may give comfort whenever the rains will pour down outside. It is the tears that pour down inside that needs the comfort of those within. The stories to be told of a house are as many as the nails that hold it together, but, the stories of a home are the stories to be told and retold each day of every generation.

A man may walk away from a house for he leaves nothing but empty rooms. A man who walks away from a home leaves everything for he leaves with a broken heart. A house is built from all that a man may take from nature. A home is built from all that a man may give to another.

The cold chill of death may be a visitor but the warmth of love given and remembered will remain behind. For this is the nature of life. It is this that we cherish and hold so dear, life, family, and home.

A value and a price may be placed on a house. A home knows no value yet it be priceless. For without family to give it meaning a home is just a house, shelter from the anger of Mother Nature. Its coldness will reach into every nook and cranny.

Silence will greet the man who lives in a house. Smiles and laughter greets him who lives in a home. Food to feed the belly will be on the table for him that lives in a house. That same food will be the nourishment of the soul of he that is at home.

A bed is but a place to sleep to him that lives in a house. The bed of he, who lives in a home, is within the heart of her that makes his life worthwhile. For he knows, he is nothing without her.

So, boy, when you look at a man, look at what he possesses in his heart. Do not look at what he possesses in his pocket. For you may be looking at the richest person on this earth and never know it. For love is more precious than gold. it was with gold that this house was built but it was with love that a home was made."

I just grinned as I whispered, " I love grandma too."

Then, as if by magic, this song seemed to float on the soft breeze above us as if someone heard and wanted us to know how he felt about home also.