Safe on the Sofa

Caw, caw, the seagulls squawked. It was a bright and sunny day, one where people would take the hot weather for granted. I splashed with my older brother Jim in the cool water. “Kids, time to go!” my mom yelled. “Why do we have to go back to our house, why not stay here” I complained. However it was too late because my parents had already picked up the beach towels and headed toward the van. I slowly stomped out of the water sighing. Once we got back home I lay on the couch out of boredom. Who would invent housing and real estate when being outside is much better. “Dad, may I go outside,” I asked. “No, we ran out of sunscreen and I don’t want you to get burnt,” he replied. Uuugh! I grabbed a book near me and began to read. However, I couldn’t make out the words because the house lighting was too dim. I wish I was outside. I closed my eyes and imagined a sunny beach. Seagulls squawking, waves crashing, sun shining, sand sparkling. It was the closest I could get to being back at the beach. Suddenly, my daydream was interrupted with a loud bang. Thunder roared and lightning crashed, trees swayed in the blowing wind. Dark clouds filled the sky. One thing was for sure, I no longer wanted to go outside. “Aaaaaaaah,” I screamed, startled. Then, the power went out and everything was dark. “Everybody okay?’ I heard my mom ask. “Yes,” I whimpered. I was very scared. The storm outside was so frightful. I closed my eyes and hid under my soft blanket. “Scaredy cat,” my annoying brother mocked. I pulled the cuddly blanket off my head and sat straight up. My parents had got out flashlights so it was no longer dark inside our house. “I’m not a scaredy cat!” I yelled back at my brother. “Mom, when-” my sentence was interrupted because a large drop of water hit me in the face. When I looked up I saw that the roof was leaking! “Uh, oh!” my dad said. I jumped off the couch to avoid getting wet. Mom quickly placed a bucket underneath the leaking roof. “How much longer until the storm is over?” Jim whined. “We don’t know, Jim,” My parents replied. I panicked just at the thought of how many nights we would end up getting stuck with cereal for dinner. Could this storm last for three days? Who knows how long we might be trapped inside our house? Then I realized something I should have realized a while ago. It may drive me insane to be cooped up inside my house, but imagine being outside in the cold storm. Home is more than meets the eye. Home is a safe and happy place. I look around the house and no longer feel like I’m looking at an excuse to stay inside, but a happy, healthy and protected place, because that’s what home means to me.