Farewell, my wooden friend...

Growing up is inevitable. However, our logical mind can process this even while our hearts are desperately clinging to the past.

Our fort is gone.

The children, who are now 14 and 11, have barely glanced at it in the past few years. But there it stood, solemnly waiting for the next visiting munchkin to slide screaming with joy down the green rocket, preferably into a waiting pool of water that had been conveniently arranged to catch them. It, too, remembered the tea parties in the upper tower, the evening dinners at the picnic table below, and the beanbags tossed at the sentries posted on the rock climbing wall.

I miss the gymnastics competitions the most. OK, granted, I won't miss the threat of bodily harm that the kids faced every time they found a NEW way to flip over the swings, or the skinned elbows as they raced each other to see who could do the obstacle course in the fastest time, but the laughter...oh, the laughter!

"The Fort" was a 2-story cedar construction with a 10' tower and a 13' tower that we had to get special dispensation from our HOA to even build it. There was a rock climbing wall, a sandbox, a picnic table, and an arm that held 3 swings. It hosted sleepovers, birthday parties, art projects, and scared puppies. But most of all, it was a fixture in our lives for over 9 years, as it was the first thing we purchased when we moved to Texas, almost before furniture. My husband and I lovingly assembled it, and sometimes not so lovingly restained it - several times. Even though we knew it was time to go, the vacancy in our back yard - and in our hearts - is almost unbearable.

Sure, something new and wondrous will take its place eventually, but for now, for this moment, I grieve. The loss of childhood, the memories never to be repeated, the high-pitched squeals of laughter forever replaced by the girlish giggling of a tween and the low baritone of my ever-growing young man. I miss those little kids, but I adore the people they are becoming.

Thank you, Mr. Fort, for being such an integral part of our family for so long. I know you'll be just as good to the next family that you went to!