Know What the Walls Know

Know what the walls know when a new family moves in on a quiet winter night. When the wind is whistling and the air is crisp. When the crickets are dancing along with the stars, the cries of a young child echo through the empty house hitting each wall repeatedly while the mother rocks him gently.

Know what the walls know as they are getting a beautiful coat of paint out on them. The walls feel beautiful with the pale yellow color getting brushed on them with small strokes. The walls are being decorated by the mother as the father starts to bring in furniture. They stand back and admire the hard work they have put in.

Know what the walls know as the years pass and the son is now a teenager and sees his parents fight daily. As he locks himself in his room and talks to himself hoping someone, anyone will listen. The walls are a pale white with posters all over them. The walls have created a safe space for the boy that they have seen grow up. The walls protect him from the outside world and what is going on around him.

Know what the walls know, the secrets they have kept for decades, the conversations that have happened in every room. Know what the walls have learned with all the people and time around them. The mother and father are now elderly and don’t fight or argue anymore. Know what the walls know, what the walls have seen. The relationship between the son and parents has grown. The mother and father have fallen back in love after a decade of fighting. The son comes to visit every weekend.

Know what the walls know as the pale yellow starts to peel and the water damage seeps through. The paintings have dulled and the furniture breaking. The mother and father happily sit looking out the window. It's a quiet winter night, the air is crisp and the wind is whistling, the crickets are dancing along the stars and the mother and father thank the house and the walls for everything they have done and everything they know.