The loveliest house that I have ever lived in was one that my grandparents owned．This house was called Crosslands and I lived there when I was a child．

I had some very happy times at Crosslands．It seemed so big to me as a child．It had a beautiful living room with a piano in it and a hall area with lots of carpets and antiques （古董）．And there was a mysterious drawing room which we only used on Sundays or on special occasions．

I used to be amazed by this room because it had the best furniture in it but it was covered up with sheets （床单）．It was as if all the furniture was wearing clothes and it seemed ridiculous （荒谬的）to me that we couldn^enjoy this lovely furniture all week long．

My favorite room was probably the kitchen．It had a lovely red floor，which was always polished，and one big cooker to heat the whole room so it was always warm．There was also a kind of clotheshorse（晒衣架）above it that we used to hang all our stuff on，and it was just lovely．It was a very warm room and my grandmother used to make ice cream that we'd eat there．

I spent a lot of time in the vegetable garden，picking peas and eating them．My grandmother used to get really cross with me because I would pick all the vegetables and fruit for dinner，but eat half of it before she could start cooking．The homegrown food tasted so fresh and delicious．

I went back to Crosslands a few years ago and it was a big mistake．They've modernized the house and got rid of those lovely old fireplaces．They've also knocked a wall down so the drawing room and living room have become one big modem room．I think what upset me most about going back was the feeling that the house had shrunk （缩小）．It had become smaller and my memory of this lovely，large，warm，comfortable house was completely different．It taught me a valuable lesson：we can't always recapture （再体验） the past but at least we can keep the beautiful memories of it with us．

63．In the author's eyes，the house is the love