Granny’s House

Granny’s house played a tremendous part in all of our formative years, and our roots grew deep through the experiences we had at our family’s royal palace…

Nothing fancy whatsoever. The airbnb fans would probably turn their nose up to it, and someone looking to rent or buy would find plenty of flaws to fix. But to the lady that called the place home, it was a palace with no comparison. And to the droves of family and friends that entered and exited those dazzling doors, the cottage was indeed a Kingdom ruled by a majestic Queen. Granny’s house was a simple structure that was perfectly fitting for the contentment of its owner, but it served as the GPS coordinates for some of the fondest of memories that float through the minds of scores of people.

As far back as I can remember, Granny’s house was the gathering place on Sunday for all us Rollins folks along with various in-laws and outlaws we had adopted along the way to share a meal. While the men swapped stories about the big buck that got away and argued over who caught the biggest bass on the most recent fishing excursion and the women did whatever it is that women do in-between all the cackling and laughing, all the kiddos were instructed to go “play on the hill”. Back when we were knee-high to a grasshopper, “the hill” seemed like it was a day’s hike from the back porch of Granny’s house. In reality, it is only about 100 feet, but to our adventurous young minds, that measurement was quite inaccurate! Granny’s house was a place where we were allowed and encouraged to let our imaginations run wild and just be kids. The good old days!

Quite often when the meal was over, the Queen of the Castle would gather all us young ‘uns up and go for a walk to the river. With her trusty can grabber in hand and a garbage bag in tow, Granny would let us help her pick up all the aluminum cans laying along the road as we walked along. Little did we know back then that we were playing a part in purchasing our own Christmas presents, because Granny would save cans all year long and then cash them in for Christmas cash when the price was right. And Christmas…oh, Christmas at Granny’s house! The big pot of Gumbo…The big pot of Chili…the dozens of varieties of white sugar poison affectionately known as candy, cake, and pie…the presents…the family squabbles…the fun and affection… It was more entertaining than a trip to Disney, and it was looked forward to more than a long-awaited vacation. It was Granny’s house.

The clock has turned. The calendar pages have turned, and things have changed. As Granny aged, the gatherings became fewer and fewer, and now that the Queen has moved to her eternal cottage in the sky, the Sunday lunches have turned into gatherings at family funerals with talks about how we need to do this and that. Reality is that Granny’s house played a tremendous part in all of our formative years, and our roots grew deep through the experiences we had at our family’s royal palace, but those days are in the rear view mirror. Life always happens in a forward gear – never in reverse, but the gift of memories can bring us back to the “Good old Days” at any time. As the writer of Hebrews noted, it is important to remember the foundation of our learning so that we don’t drift away from it (Hebrews 2:1). I am and always will be grateful for the formative lessons learned through the many times spent at Granny’s house. Even when the house is long gone, the work that it performed in this life and many others will live on.

You too probably have a “Granny’s House” or some influential person that played a part in making you who you are today. May I encourage you to stay close to your foundation and never forget where you came from? We all have the happy moments and the bumps along the way that work together to shape us. And I’d love to compare stories with you some where down the road. Maybe at Granny’s house. Maybe some other life-impacting locale. Wherever it is, I look forward to seeing you and catching up with you and comparing stories about Granny’s house…in the Great Outdoors!