When I was little my grama, who we called Nini, lived in a big yellow house with black shutters. The interior of the house was lined with a bright red carpet. Even today those vibrant colors stick out in my mind. Our entire extended family lived close enough for me to enjoy the subtle nuances of the neighborhood.
It seems as though I spent thousands of hours playing in the back yard with all my cousins. The middle section of Shennandoah road became so familiar to me. I remember being surprised by the loud engine noises of her neighbor with a motorcycle, I still recall the scary old man who lived two doors down. I remember the nice old man that lived next door and the countless hours spent playing around her willow tree.
Summers were spent playing in the back yard with my cousins and brother. Since I'm in the middle, I was lucky enough to have spent time with nearly all my cousins back there. When I was very young Quinn, Toran and I (who were always together) learned from our older cousins; Colin, Bailey, Erin, Katie and Bridgid. As time went on we were able to walk over to Nini's house by ourselves and thus, spent more time there. We'd play hours and hours of baseball and then go in and talk to Nini.
As I got older, there were some welcome additions to our family. My cousin Pat was born in 1998 and then Fiona in 2000. In 2002 my aunt Jen had her first son, Ben. It seemed that after Ben was born we went to Nini's even more. We no longer just played outside, we were now responsible for some of our younger cousins just as our cousins were responsible for us a few years before.
Summer memories are not the only ones I have of Nini's house. For a while we spent our Christmas's there too. But most of what I remember was on Halloween. After trick-or-treating we'd all go back to Nini's house for donuts and cider. We'd always end up watch "The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown" at some point during the night. No Halloween was complete without a trip to Nini's house.
At some point in 2004 things changed. Nini got sick and spent a lot of time at the hospital. It became clear that she was no longer able to live on her own. She lived in a rehab facility for some time and then assisted living. She eventually got her own apartment. We still went to visit her but it just wasn't the same. Somehow it lacked the charm of the big yellow house.
Things have changed completely since then, Nini died in 2010. The scary old man who lived a few doors down is also dead, the guy with the motorcycle has long since moved. The house is no longer yellow and the shutters are no longer black. The red carpet was ripped out years ago. Things have changed with us too, we're no longer care-free little kids running around the back yard. Erin and Katie have graduated college and both have full-time jobs in Boston. Their sister Bridgid lives in Chicago year-round and Shannon will also be headed to college next year. Colin, Bailey and Quinn have also entered the world of college while Toran has joined me at St. Bonaventure. The "babies" Pat and Fiona are now in high school and seventh grade respectively. Ben is now in fifth grade and three more cousins have joined us since Nini moved (Gabby, Charlotte and Sullivan). It took a while to realize but we were partly shaped by our experiences at Nini's house
Time passes and neighborhoods change. These few houses on Shennandoah were one of thousands of neighborhoods in the world who's charms have encompassed the childhood of a generation. From an outside perspective, It would appear we have all gone on to bigger and better things. Yet I would wager there isn't one of us who wouldn't trade it all away for one more care free day at Nini's house.
