To get to Fantasy Land, head out SC57 to Burke Road, take a right, cross the railroad, pass by the fire station and hang a right on a wonderfully named Mirage Lake Road; you are in the midst of Americana, a row of well kept homes in a dream like setting. As they say, you can’t make this scene up but here it is for real. And one address has a special place in the hearts of twins, preteens who are fortunate enough to have grandparents who spoil them with love and all the things that go with it such as providing them with what every child hopes for but few realize: a real outdoor playhouse in the backyard.
Is there a child who has not dreamed of ‘playing house’ in an authentic setting? Sure there are many who ‘play house’ but only as a fantasy; it exists only in their cardboard box imagination. But for the fortunate, there are those doting grandparents who pull out all the stops to making their grandchildren’s growing up full of memorable experiences, making their dreams come true.
The setting is perfect, behind granny’s home within sight for easy observation by the adults. Now this is not an abbreviated structure that leaves much to the imagination, this is a real stick built home that can not only accommodate an overnight camp-out for a set of twins but also in one case, accompanied by the watchful, sacrificing grandma who slept on the floor with her brood … just in case ghosts and goblins visited.
Authentic is the word to describe this playhouse down to the curtains in the front window and the hardware on the front door. The home is covered with vinyl, has a pitched roof and resting on four creosote posts embedded in the ground for stability since the building is about 5-6 feet off the ground with steps (and a railing) leading to the front entrance. To make absolutely sure the house can withstand the activity of twins and their friends playing inside the sanctuary, substantial braces have addressed this possible problem.
From casual observation, the house appears to be about 5X10x8 feet in size although this is the estimate of one whose dimensions are suspect but ample in size for those who call this home away from home.
Now for those who have such a home, their names must be placed to show ownership and this too has been taken care of with the names of the occupants proudly posted on the front door: Ashton – Preston.
One wonders who gets the most pleasure from having the playhouse in the back yard, Granny or the twins?
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Bill Lee, PO Box 128,
Hamer, SC 29547
