480 Burwood Road, Hawthorn

This is 480 Burwood Road, Hawthorn, I walked past it a few weeks ago. It's the house I lived in with my grandmother, my uncle and sisters from the age of four and a half to eight years old. That's the hedgerow and tiny front lawn where Nan would hide the Easter eggs for us to find. The same hedge that we would poke our hands through to frighten people walking by. Many times I would sit on those front steps underneath that arch, watching the people and traffic pass. It's insignificant I suppose - just a house and some memories. But it's the place where my grandmother sewed & cooked & cleaned. It is the place we said goodbye every morning as we headed off to school & it is the place we returned to in the afternoon. It's the place where I had many of my childhood diseases, the place where I received my first doll and Gollywog. The first time I ever saw a person with dark skin. The place where I first watched television during the Melbourne Olympic games. It's the place I lived in when I learned to swim, ride a bicycle & learn to cook. Yes, insignificant I guess. But there it is, still standing.