Whenever I go to visit mum, I pop into what used to be my bedroom. Well… I say my bedroom, but in truth it was shared with my three older brothers for much of my time there.
It’s a room that holds so many memories…
I picture the layout…
Bunk beds in the corner next to the window… mine was on top. Parallel to that, a single bed and another bed in front of the door as you enter. At the end of the bunk beds there’s a white MFI wardrobe, and two others diagonally opposite with the bottoms falling out of the drawers. They weren’t that well-made, were they?
A couple of bedside cupboards next to the single beds and some toys and clothes strewn around… mostly on beds, but some on the floor!
How we ever got to sleep, I’ll never know! Even as we all grew older, we still threw things at each other unexpectedly… sometimes three of us would gang up on the other and bombard him with anything we could find… rolled up socks, pillows, clothes from the floor, anything.
Often, in our quieter times, we’d talk… mostly about football and the team we all supported – West Bromwich Albion. It was a passion we all shared, and we all went to matches together with dad. Win and we’d have a great week… lose and we weren’t quite so cheerful. So discussions often veered towards our prospects in the next match. Often, we’d end up chanting for our team or against our local rivals!
Despite all the beds and cupboards, there was still space on the floor, where we played board games… chess, draughts, Monopoly, Mousetrap, Cluedo… the list goes on!
And as I got older, I’d lie on my bed reading science fiction books from the library… no Amazon or Kindles in those days… real books that had been read by countless people and travelled to every corner of the county. We’d travel to Birmingham Library on the bus every two or three weeks to swap books. Happy days.
We had a few disagreements, of course… but nothing serious. Looking back, we got on really well and any arguments soon blew over, since those not involved, got involved and sorted things out. I saved my best arguments for my slightly younger sister… we certainly knew how to raise the roof! We had a bit of a love-hate relationship, but mostly we got on really well and now we’re very close… so no harm done!
There were sad times too…
I have vivid recollections of dad sitting on the landing after collapsing with a perforated ulcer. The ambulance crew were fantastic and got to hospital within minutes of him dying… the doctor told him he was 2 minutes away from death. A lucky escape and from that day on, dad never smoked again. He sucked a lot of boiled sweets… but he never smoked again!
The day my grandad died, I remember bouncing around the house, not really knowing what to do, which room to be in. He used to visit twice a week when he was fit enough to do so and lived with us for a few months, maybe years as he grew older. Happy times.
And when dad had cancer, he spent his last few weeks in what used to by my room. It looked very different then, of course, but I still have memories of sitting with him, chatting about every-day life, football, faith… anything really. Sometimes he knew I was there… others he just talked to Jesus and thanked Him for relieving his pain and for being there with him.
It’s strange really. I’ve lived in many places and I’ve always felt that wherever I am, is where I belong. I’m not one for looking back…
Not one for reminiscing…
I like to live life now, having learned from my past…
But, whenever I go to our family home…
Whenever I step into my old bedroom…
Memories come flooding back.
This is a place where I will always belong.
Keith Jones
Living a Life of Purpose
21 Days of Transformation: A Journey to Dig Deep into Your Inner Thoughts
If that sounds like a journey you’d like to take with me…
If you feel the need to dig deep and find out things about yourself you never knew existed…
If you need clarity and purpose to be at the forefront of your life…
Let’s take this journey together.