This House

by Rachel Wartes

Rachel shared this poem at the family solstice and Christmas celebration--a bittersweet gathering this year, as Issa and Elle and I prepare to move to Gunnison in a week or so.

This house has been home for ten years, but more than a dwelling, it has been a container for the life of the family. We say farewell with much gratitude.

Within these walls lie many secrets

whispered in the hushed hours

of snowy mornings

This house could weave you stories

of pain and grief

and the long, dark nights of the soul

It has seen the impossibilities of youth

and the slow patience and wisdom

of age

These walls know that laughter and a warm embrace

are the inevitable consequences

of the ebb and flow of anger

It has borne ideas and revolutions

of spirit

it’s heart keeping rhythm to the beat

of the drum

This house knows that God resides

in the smell of fresh bread

and sun-warmed peaches

And that the sweetness of warm honey

is worth the sting

every time

It has heard the music of the rooster

calling to rise the sun

and the children

This house knows that the secrets of life

are whispered on the sweet, warm breath of a goat

during the morning milking

as you lay your head alongside hers

But most of all this house would tell you

that the memories of joy and sorrow

woven deep into its walls

through time and love

are not its secrets at all

but belong to those who have lived within