{"id":7596,"date":"2026-10-08T20:40:57","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T20:40:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.martycoffinevans.com\/?p=7596"},"modified":"2026-10-08T20:40:57","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T20:40:57","slug":"this-ole-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.martycoffinevans.com\/?p=7596","title":{"rendered":"This ole house"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Once Upon a time,<\/strong> 14″ x 11, “Gouache, By Donna Lyons \u00a9 2020<\/p>\n

This Ole House<\/strong><\/p>\n

By Marty Coffin Evans \u00a9 2025<\/p>\n

In a recent trip from Colorado to Texas, through a little tip of Oklahoma, we traveled through many small towns. In Texas, you could count on driving through some every four miles or so. \u00a0I don\u2019t remember their names except for \u201cTurkey\u201d which seemed a little comical for a town\u2019s name.<\/p>\n

No matter which state we drove through, most had a Main Street. In many of these towns, where once banks, cafes, laundromats, service stations and small businesses flourished, boarded windows now indicate their demise. Vacant motels and hotels had experienced the economic impact even though they were located on well-traveled highways. I chuckled at the name of a surviving motel -\u201cIt Will Do.\u201d Don\u2019t we often say that?<\/p>\n

What happened to these towns, I wondered? How did once thriving communities now remain lost in time with only a modest number of habitants calling them home. In one small town with a two-digit population, a trailer size Post Office insured those residents would not be totally forgotten.<\/p>\n

Some homes with weathered siding, no windows or doors had totally fallen down. I thought of an old song from the mid-1950\u2019s, now re-arranged\/re-released in 1981 and 2005, \u201cThis Ole House.\u201d Who had lived in these old houses? What stories could they tell?<\/p>\n

The song\u2019s lyrics speak to this: \u201cThis old house once rang with laughter. This old house heard many shouts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now forsaken, these homes once held families. Perhaps that home became the first one where a young couple raised their children. Through life\u2019s gains and losses, they might have grown through time together. Did the children leave home and their small community? Did they look back as their parents, now aging in place, remained in their \u201cole house\u201d?<\/p>\n

These old houses and small towns have their own legacy known mostly to their residents and families. I hope laughter and shouts of joy fill their stories.<\/p>\n

October 2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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