My Own Victorian!

There are many dreams in my life which haven’t come true, but today I want to celebrate the ones that have. Most of my life, my dream was to be a novelist, living in an old Victorian house with several cats. And the week of my 39th birthday, we bought a house built in 1885 and I adopted two new kittens. My new release, “On Grounds of Honor” has been very well received, and I’m finally earning a reputation as a historical fiction writer. I can’t tell you how very blessed I feel!

Longtime friends and family know how much I’ve had to lose, endure, and struggle to get here. Which is why I am all the more thankful for it. My husband, my daughter, and the two cats and dog we already had, are all part of the gifts God has given me in this new season of life.

Not everyone appreciates the charm of an old house—some just see the work and cost involved in maintaining it. For me, historic homes have a character and an artistry in their architecture and construction which no modern house can have. In every scuff mark on the wood floors and in the bricks and wallpaper are imbedded memories of eras long past. This house in which I now sit at my desk and type was built by men who remembered the Civil War; it was here during WWI and WWII; through Vietnam… through 9/11… and it still stands today.

More than five generations have lived in this house. I wonder how many children were born here and the number of people who died here, within these very walls. Someone recently commented to me that with a house of this age, you can never truly own it. You are merely a caretaker, preserving if for the next generation. I am honored and privileged to step into line as its current “owner.”

I still have boxes to unpack and pictures to hang on the walls to impress my personal mark upon it, but this house is feeling more and more like home every day. My dog is thrilled with a fenced-in back yard to run free; Ben’s favorite part of the property is the barn (where Roy Rogers printed T-Shirts back in the ‘50s); and the two adult cats love having a large house to explore with plenty of places to hide from the dog when he becomes a nuisance. The kittens are just happy to be loved.

The year listed for this house is 1885, although according to my neighbors, most houses on this street are older than what is recorded. Apparently one did not have to pay property taxes until the house was deeded, and it could not be until its completion… so it often took quite a long time for a house to be “completed.” At one point in its history, my house was a Bed & Breakfast, and I’ve heard a rumor that it was an antique store at one time as well.

My hope and prayer is that my family will make many wonderful memories in this house in the years to come as we become a part of its history.