To the house that built me,

Thank you.

Thank you for the many memories that were formed within your walls. You friend allowed me to become who I am today.

Thank you for teaching me to be strong when I scraped my knee on your extremely steep driveway. You taught me what comfort was when I lost multiple people close to me. You gave me the meaning of home.

Thank you for giving me a second family who lived 10 feet away. If it weren't for you, I may not have ever met one of my best friends now. You supported imagination when I was young and playing in the backyard with my best friend pretending we were in a spaceship when really we were just in a playground. You allowed our game of "house" to become real life in your walls.

Thank you for filling my days with laughter. In fact, you were always filled with laughter whether it was from laughing at my dad with my mom or laughing with my friends- or my sister when she decides to come in my room and do crazy dances. But, you were also filled with tears sometimes. Happy tears from graduating high school and leaving for college, and sad tears from losing some of the closest people to me.

Thank you for providing comfort whenever I had a bad day. I always wanted to come back to you and lay down in my bed and stare at your plain white ceilings. Whenever I had a good day, I wanted to come back to you and share my day with the other people who lived under your roof. You gave me shelter and all of the memories I have to thank are because of you. They happened under your roof and when I think of them, I think of you.

My family appreciates you more than you will ever know because well of course you are only a house. And as time draws nearer, we will be leaving you and moving onto the next memory making box that we will call a home. But don't worry, a great new family will be moving in and you will become home to new memories. More children will grow up in your walls and scrape their knees on your steep driveway. More family parties and graduation parties will take place within your walls, and hundreds of more feet will find their way through your doors.

I know we built you, but really you built me and three other people. You allowed me to grow up and experience all life has to give under your roof. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

Sincerely,

A girl who loves her home