In 1950, my parents signed a mortgage for $5,000 and committed to purchase a 1,200-square-foot-prefab house at 6063 Abbey Avenue, in Comstock, Michigan. They were scared about making the $44.00 a month payments but determined to own “The American Dream.”

They painted the outside of their “Dream” chartreuse and added burgundy shutters. The floors were dark-brown tile. The walls were paneled with brown faux wood. The kitchen was so small we had to squeeze sideways to pass between the sink and yellow Formica table with its matching plastic chairs. The bathroom had a tub but no shower. I washed my hair in the kitchen sink. My parents shared the 12X16 foot large bedroom. My room was smaller, but they let me choose a blue-and-white-flowered bedspread that I absolutely loved.

It wasn’t “much,” but it was home.

Whether you grow up in a tiny-prefab house or a McMansion, your home is a place where you created many stories. Use the following prompts to tell them:

Perhaps you moved from house to house? List your childhood homes in order, and then select one as the foundation for your stories. You can add stories for other homes later.

Here’s a great idea for a memory jogger:  Sketch the floorplan of a favorite childhood home. Don’t judge your drawing for its architectural accuracy or lament about your artistic talents.  Just draw.

After the shell is finished, add a few details. Imagine you are entering your home. Walk through the door and enter a room of your choice. Pick up your pencil and sketch the location of furniture, windows, and doors. Use crayons or markers to make appropriate splashes of color across the room. Do this for each room, paying special attention to your bedroom.

Now sit back and examine your drawing. Welcome your memories.

Describe your home. Where was it? What did it look like? How many rooms? Describe the kitchen, living room, parlor, dining room, bedrooms, bathroom(s), porch, and outbuildings one at a time. If I were to go into that room with you, what would I see, hear, smell?

How was your home heated? Tell a story about “stoking the coal furnace.”

Did you have air conditioning or depend on fans for cooling?

Tell a story about a special room—maybe you had a parlor that was only used for special occasions.

Describe your bedroom. Did you share your room? Tell a story about your roommate(s).

Did you go to your room to dream? Tell a story about your dreams. Did they become a reality? Why or why not?

Tell a story about your radio, record player, TV.

Tell a story about games you played in your home or in your yard.

Tell a story about family members and pets who lived with you in your home.

Tell a story about how you felt when you walked through the door.

Tell a story about a happy memory you associate with your home.

Tell a story about a sad memory you associate with your home.

Tell a story about a poignant memory you associate with your home.

Tell a story about a tragic memory you associate with your home.

Tell a story about what you liked about your home.

Tell a story about what you didn’t like about your home.

Tell a story about you and your friends hanging out at your home.

Tell a story about how your home influenced you for the rest of your life.