The house in the outskirts of Tagaytay is one of the few things left behind by my late MIL. She furnished the house a couple of years before she succumb to cancer. She was the ultimate homemaker despite keeping her own corporate job. She's had her fair share of bad relationships with house helpers but her homes were always immaculate. They were well-furnished and clean. The Tagaytay house was that. It was furnished with things she liked and bought from her trips to Megamall or Venezia. Her magazines, nearly 20 years old, are still there. She'd visit the place once or twice a week, just to amuse herself after her retirement.
My children never got to meet her. Whenever we visit the house, which wasn't often, I'd tell my children that everything they see in that house was Mommy's. You see her taste in style and furnishings in the things around this house. She planted beautiful, lush plants that made the house warm and inviting. She made life for everyone easy and comfortable.
Recently, the house has been put up for sale. There are serious buyers too. During the long weekend, my husband decided to spend one last night in the house before it gets turned over to strangers. Before we went back to Manila, we took pictures of the different nooks and rooms, the views of the mountains, and the view of the Balayan Gulf in the distance.
Yes, I am getting sentimental over this. It is like we are letting go of another part of Mommy that the kids just got to know. The pine trees were Mommy's. The bed and decor were Mommy's.
Yes, it is just a house, but it was also Mommy's.
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