Create new agreements based on respect and love. Don Miguel Ruiz

When Semina and her Grandmother arrive at the apartment, Semina’s Mother bends down and openes her arms for Semina, her Mother’s hug is very strong and it feels like she never wants to let go. Semina does not cry because she does not want anybody to think that she is a baby.
Her Mother and Grandmother go to the kitchen to have a talk and Semina goes to the living room to the big desk. Her Father alows her use his desk, if she was careful not to write on the wood or make any scratches ~~ she likes sitting in the big desk chair and swing around and around. When she draws her pictures she has to be on her knees in the big chair, because she is too little to reach the desk any other way. Semina loves the living room it has a big Oriental rug that she can play hop scotch on when it rains outside and she has to play inside.
Today she is going to draw a picture of her Grandparents house.
Semina loves her Grandparents house, she was born upstairs in the part where her parents had lived since before she was born. She lived there until she was five years old, that is when she and her parents moved to the big apartment in the city.
First she draws the house two stories, downstairs is where her Grandparents live and upstairs is where she used to live. Then the flower garden by the side of the house. The flower garden is very beautiful and fun. Her Nanny used to take her there and show her how to take one piece of the very tall green and white gras, put it between both of her thumbs and then blow into it and make a whistle sound, Semina is not very good at it, but Nanny can do it every time.
In the corner of the flower garden is a very tall plant, it is even taller than her Father, it is called Angelica.
The big boys sneak into the garden and take a piece of the branches of the Angelica, cut it into a long piece and blow dried peas through it at the little children. They are very sneaky and try not to get caught by the adults. When the adults catch them doing this, they yell “Stop that, you could blow and eye out with this pea shooter”then they say “Give it to me” and then they shake their head and say “What are you thinking?” The boys always drop the pea shooter and run away, that always makes the adults even angrier.
Semina’s Grandmother makes candy out of the stems and sometimes decorates birthday cakes with it, that is a much better idea.
On the other side of the house is a big lawn. Grandfather always puts a big tent there in the summer for his Grandchildren to play in.
There a fences all around the house the garden and the big lawn. The fence ends right where Grandfathers carpentry shop is. There are many men that work there and make furniture. First they have to be apprentice, that means that they have to practice and Grandfather will teach them. Then after they learn what Grandfather teaches them, they become Master Carpenter. The apprentice that Grandfather has now is very young, Semina thinks he is old, but she heard her Mother and Grandmother say that he is very young. He sweeps the shop and oils the tools ~~ Grandfather likes everything in order and very clean.
The Children have to knock before they come into the shop and if Grandfather says “Come inn” they can go into the shop. They are not allowed to touch any of the big machines that make the loud noise, if it makes a noise they have to go outside and wait until there is no more noise. Grandfather is very strict about this and explains how he lost his fingers in the big saw machine.
He has two fingers missing on the right hand, they are the fingers between the pointy finger and the little finger. When Semina looks at this hand she gets a shiver and is very sad for Grandfather.
Sometimes Semina is allowed to sit on the big table by the window, behind Grandfathers work bench. Grandfather lifts her up and puts her on the table and always says “You will be safe here”
She makes things out of wood from the big scrap pile and sometimes she just sits there and watches Grandfather make things or write numbers in his big book. Semina loves being in the shop, there are so many good smells that come from the wood. There is sawdust and curls of wood that come when the men plane the wood. Those curls are her favorite and she likes to pick them up and play with them, she tries not to brake them.
There are two entrances to the shop one from the big lawn, this is the entrance Grandfather and the family use. On the other side of the fence is the other entrance, there is a walk up to it from the road, the customers use that door. When they come to talk with Grandfather they sometimes have big rolls of paper under their arm, they are called drawings, but they don’t look like real drawings. They are just lines and lot of numbers. Grandfather spreads them out on the big table by the window and points to things and writes a lot of, what he calls notes. He sometimes says “We will use Mahogani here” or “I think Birch would be best for this” he also scratches is head, under his cap, when he thinks, Semina is always amazed that his cap does not fall off, when he does this.

Semina hears her Mother call for her, she will finish her drawing later and think some more about her Grandparents place. That makes Semina smile her happy smile.