Running up to my bedroom on second floor, I’d turn on the landing and pass through loft area with railing overlooking stairwell. I entered my private world with yellow walls that reflected sunlight, white furniture, and a small closet with loose doorknob. I flopped on the comfy double bed, knocking headboard against the wall, and fingered the bright patchwork quilt handmade by my maternal grandmother, tracing lines of my imagination. In this cheery space, I would draw or do homework at my small desk, listen to popular hits on the radio, and read my latest library stack in bed. Three shelves on the wall held treasures I’d crafted of decoupage, miniature paintings, marble mice and clay.
I opened my double hung window on summer nights to let breeze and neighbors’ voices through the screen. Sometimes I’d hear a siren passing nearby on a busier street or the pizza delivery guy come to the door (after my brother and I were to bed). I experienced both sweet dreams and frightful nightmares in that room, learned to pray, and fantasized about boys. Sometimes a best friend or two would sleep over and we’d talk and laugh until late. In the morning, my mom would open the stairway door so our miniature poodle, Jock, could scamper up carpeted steps and leap on bed to wake me.
city summer night…
fragrance of backyard lilacs
wafts into bedroom
Lillian invites us to write haibun of a childhood room, including a traditional haiku with kigo (seasonal) word and kireji (cutting) word/turn of idea. Read more at dVerse.
a poem in my pocket 
Jul 25, 2018 @ 21:16:30
What a beautiful bedroom. You must have felt like a princess in her high tower. Sorry to hear your folks waited until after bedtime to call the pizza guy, lol
Jul 26, 2018 @ 06:54:56
Right?! We had our share of pizza on other (earlier) occasions.
Jul 27, 2018 @ 20:12:44
Cool
Jul 25, 2018 @ 19:26:31
This sounds like a nice cozy space to spend time in. The dog doesn’t hurt either!
Jul 25, 2018 @ 19:35:32
😉
Jul 24, 2018 @ 19:29:02
Such nice memory evoking details!
Jul 24, 2018 @ 20:24:51
Glad you liked it!
Jul 24, 2018 @ 14:54:22
I love the memories that you brought back from your room… the sounds of night especially,,
Jul 24, 2018 @ 20:24:29
Thanks for stopping by, Bjorn.
Jul 24, 2018 @ 11:30:40
You story had so many good memories in it. Screens in the windows was a part of living without AC. Great Haiku.
Dwight
Jul 24, 2018 @ 20:23:48
Thanks for reading & commenting, Dwight.
Jul 23, 2018 @ 23:41:39
I like tracing lines of imagination in that patchwork quilt and having the dog wake one up in the morning.
Jul 24, 2018 @ 06:51:05
Both quilt and dog are only dear memories now…
Jul 23, 2018 @ 21:27:30
I love the detail of your prose. I feel as if I’m really in your room, listening to the radio with you. And oh yes, I can relate to opening the windows and feeling the breeze and hearing our neighbors’ voices. We had something called June Bugs where I grew up and you could hear them sort of clicking or walking on your screens at night! Smiling so much about having your friends over to spend the night…staying up until the wee hours talking and plotting about boys 🙂
Love the haiku….nature in the city….and kigo “summer” and the kierji with the … It shifts from what one would think about city summer nights, to the scent of nature and lilacs wafting into your bedroom. Love the word “wafting”.
So glad you posted to the prompt.
Jul 23, 2018 @ 21:34:43
Thanks so much, Lillian…I feel like I accomplished my goal for this interesting prompt!
Jul 23, 2018 @ 21:19:26
What a lovely atmosphere. A room full of life! (K)
Jul 23, 2018 @ 21:23:13
Thanks, K! Fond memories 🙂