At the very top of a hill, on Plum Street, there is an empty house. A wooden swing sways in the breeze on the front porch and the old screen door beckons, "come in."

I consider the invitation, but just beyond the driveway in the corner of what was once a garden, I pause to look at the hollyhocks that stand tall in the sunshine.

Hollyhocks were growing in that very same place fifty years ago. Watching the colorful blossoms dance in the wind, I recall a frolic, two little girls dancing barefoot in the tall sweet grass. Running over well worn paths through the woods. Splashing in a shady brook catching crawdads and little frogs. Dirty faces, tangled hair and big grins with front teeth missing. The baby teeth are gone, but it will be some time before these girls grow up. In our hearts we still haven't.

Sweet days, summer songs and high adventure. Secret places for hideouts. Stolen cookies wrapped in old bread wrappers and koolaid in a rusty canteen.

Magic nights counting the stars sleeping in a tent made from old blankets. Waking up damp and chilled from the cold dew.

A quick breakfast of buttery toast and hot chocolate and we were off again. Running out, the sound of the screen door slamming shut behind us announcing our departure for our very own "Neverland."

A fallen tree was our castle. We had no need of a Prince Charming. We were little liberated women who could and would do anything. Broken glass and rusty nails that sparkled in the sunlit stream became precious treasure.

And we were rich, life was a promise. Laughter and Joy were constant companions. That yard and the woods beyond were the world and we ruled with absolute certainty. Outside was where anything was possible and Inside was a place to dream and plan. The old screen door was a portal to all that we could imagine.

The hollyhocks stood like sentinels watching over two little queens. They waved goodbye in the morning with dew kissed blooms. In the twilight shadows they waited for our return, sending the fireflies to light our way.

And there I stood between the hollyhocks and the old screen door. Fifty years gone by in an instant. I hear little girl giggles and the wind whispers in my ear, "the house is not empty, it is full of love and laughter and memories sweet forever after."