Newly married
my young parents,
rented a flounder house
in Old Town Alexandria.
Set back
behind a large stately home,
the low, narrow house
held two small bedrooms
one bath
a resident kitchen mouse
and nearly two hundred years of memory.
Built in the 1830s,
the rusty red brick house
had a dirt packed floor
just covered
before my parents moved in.
Their landlord, a widower,
offered the space
if my mother would help tend
to the large garden
in her spare time.
Mr. Shea and my father,
both lawyers of different generations,
had colleagues in common.
The best part,
besides the modest rent,
was the view.
Across the street
stood a large park sloping down
to the banks of the Potomac River.
I was a baby in this small house.
My mother,
now five years gone,
had the whole world in front of her.
I like to imagine her
walking out in the early morning,
coffee cup in hand,
scanning the river,
endless possibilities ahead.
A Reading Life 
Such a beautifully written memory of “beginnings.” A vision of the past with a window to the future. The pictures are beautiful to see, but your words reveal the depth of meaning here.
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Oh wow. This is gorgeous. You took us all back in time. Thank you for including the photos too. It brings this piece to life. But even without them, your words tell a whole introduction to a story!
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Such a lovely story of Old Town Alexandria where I also lived as a newlywed, but in a 1960’s built basement apartment. You took me way back to walking those streets and imagining the stories – so many stories.
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My husband and I lived in Old Town as newlyweds (Yates Garden on Royal Street) but moved away until just this year! Fun to be back in Old Town…I bet we share many memories!
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Your words are so descriptive, especially for someone who has little background knowledge of that area. Your pictures compliment the poem beautifully.
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Such a sweet piece. You know I love an old place–I can easily picture your mom making a home and family there with that majestic view of the river. Old Town holds so much history for you.
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Wow- I love how you connect the history of this space with the present wonderings triggered by the view. My favorite lines-
“walking out in the early morning,
coffee cup in hand,
scanning the river,
endless possibilities ahead”
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What a lovely old house you describe so beautifully. I like the idea of a resident kitchen mouse! What a view, I imagine you could dream big dreams there.
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