Delilah's Porch

The porches of Mulliken....

One of the things I found attractive about Mulliken when I was house shopping was the large number of children living in the town at the time.

On the day I moved into my house, the first person to stop by was a dark-haired, lanky youngster on a bike. She said hi, asked my name, then asked if I had any kids. I said no. She frowned; said she was hoping I'd brought some new playmates for her. But we could be friends anyway.

I asked her name; she said "Delilah" as though it had three quite separate words.

Delilah took ill a couple years later and was thereafter confined to a wheel chair; this porch was rebuilt to accommodate her.

One of the interesting things was how her playmates (really, there was no shortage of 'em) accommodated her handicap: Basically, they ignored it. Sometimes they'd just sit by the road and talk, or play games; more often they'd do something active. If she could keep up, that was fine; if not, someone would push the chair for her, and everyone would just keep playing. Worked for her; worked for all of 'em. I confess to surprise, and delight.

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Everyone grew up, and most of 'em have moved away. Seventeen years later, there's a new generation of youngsters in the neighborhood, and I'm enjoying watching them.