April 03, 2013

The First Step

The First Step
By John R. Greenwood


Life is a climb. Step by step we rise up from one place to another. It may take a lifetime of steps to realize a dream. This blog is the story of an average man reaching a point in his life where grey hair and bones that make noise are just speed bumps on the road to a fulfilling life. I recently had an opportunity to visit the building that my aunt and uncle used to call their home. When they retired many years ago the small town where I grew up purchased the home and converted the back half into a community center. The front of the home and its rooms have been closed off and used for storage. I had been visiting the town hall next door and I stopped at the community center and asked if I could look through the front half of the house. As I slowly opened a set of doors at the bottom of these stairs I was instantly transported back in time. It had been almost 40 years since I had walked up these steps. The stairway once immaculately maintained was now worn and tired. Knowing what a meticulous housekeeper my aunt had been it broke my heart to see them this way. Even in this condition they possessed a certain regality. Left neglected and sealed off from the world the front of the home emitted a sadness I couldn't shake. Although I am glad to see the home being used to serve the people of the town that surrounds it, I couldn't help but wish better things for it's future. I am hopeful that one day there will be enough funds available for the town to restore the remainder of the home to its original beauty. I envision a mini-museum of a 1950's home, furnished to the time period, complete with vintage photos, music, and wallpaper. 


These stairs are similar to the stairs of my life. Each step has a story. You travel up and down them day after day reliving and reviving events and memories. Each journey up and each journey down creates a life. How we embrace that life is up to the individual. I have chosen to share these steps in stories and photographs. I do it because it satisfies a craving. 


If you ignore those cravings and wait for another day or another opportunity it may never come. My suggestion is to open those doors at the bottom of the stairs and start climbing, you'll never know what's at the top if you don't take the first step. 

8 comments:

  1. What an incredibly fine post. well-written and the photos are perfect. I love these types of little adventures. I agree: a great opportunity to recreate a 50's style home. I also love your observation about the "regality" still to be found in those wonderful stairs.

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    1. When I walked up those stairs it was like a time machine. It was as if each step took me back another dozen years. I looked at the opportunity as a rare gift.

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  2. Like your analogy of stairs and the upward climb to make a good life for yourself. Taking yourself back by walking through the house would stir so many memories. I imagine they will play out in your mind for awhile. To be able to revisit this time capsule sure is something few people are ever able to do. Good post -- barbara

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  3. For some reason I've been thinking about these stairs all day.

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  4. I love the first shot of the stairs. I'd rather it be shot the other way... going down! It would tell me my work remodeling is done for the day. hahahahaha

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