Photo by Simon Maage on Unsplash

I’ve been what is known as a historical for awhile now. What this means is I love history and I love to be involved in that world. Sometimes they call us hystericals just for good measure. Hystericals-oops, I mean historicals, light up when the the conversation turns towards old architecture and usually think that every building fifty years or older must be preserved. No matter that the edifice may carry decades of bad renovations, strange add-ons and inappropriate modifications. It’s what’s underneath it all that counts.

Most cities have their Vintage Home Tours in the spring. Usually five or six houses are chosen and then volunteers are gathered and assigned to the homes to recount the history of the home and expound on it’s architecture. This usually happens in May, when Spring is in beginning to set out her blooms and brighten our world. It also happens to usually hit the first hottest day of the year as well. I’ve not participated in a home tour yet, where at the end of the day, my hair wasn’t stuck to my head and I felt soggy from the hot sun beating against my old fashioned clothes. But the experience is worth it, because old architecture is lovely and a door to the past.

Walking into a vintage home transports you immediately into the past and to a simpler and gentler time. Old buildings feel solid and strong around you. The craftsmanship of a time when people built their own homes from scratch and made sure what they made would last. The stories of generations of lives that have passed through the doors of an old home. Some of those players return during a tour to see their old home and relive loved memories. Their faces light up with recognition and wonder as their past comes alive once more.