All those long, lonely days, I sit waiting for you, trying to be patient until you choose to return. I hear your key in the lock of the faded door, and I call an ignored welcome. You rush in, not removing your shoes in time and another mud stain marks the threadbare carpet. I can’t help but sigh and my grand age makes this sound more like a creaking floorboard. You shake your head, irritated, and flop on the sofa, next to the damp patch on the unpainted wall.
You refuse to look at me. Can you feel my very soul crying out to harbour you? My life’s work has been to protect you. I love you. Yet, at times, you seem oblivious to my needs.
I’m desperate for your attention. Can’t you see? My windows are cracked and filthy, condensation is rotting my old timbers, and it’s been years since I was decorated.
Houses do need to be maintained, you know.
4/9/2026
The Words That Got to Me
I really liked the personification in this piece. Giving the house its own voice and letting it speak with this mix of love, weariness, and quiet hurt was what made it work for me. It turns something practical like neglect and maintenance into something much more emotional. The line about the sigh sounding more like a creaking floorboard was the one that really stood out to me. That was such a good detail because it blended the voice of the narrator with the physical reality of the house so naturally. I also liked the line “My life’s work has been to protect you.” That gave the piece its heart.
What I appreciated most here was the sadness underneath it. It is not really just about a house needing repairs. It feels like it is speaking to the way we can take for granted the very things that shelter us, hold us, and keep loving us anyway. For such a short piece, it carries a lot of feeling. Quiet, clever, and a little heartbreaking.