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Laurent childhood's home was located deep into the Calabrian mountains. It was a house that he cherished and within which he had a lot of memories. He was born in the house and had lived there with his parents ever since. The house was oversized for their small family but it had been inherited by his mother whose mother had inherited from her father. It was a two storey house sitting at the edge of a mountain ridge, surrounded by a large olive grove with beautiful view of the Calabrian country side.

Straight out of high school, attending the university of Calabria which was not too far, he would return most weekends. These returns were to the delight of his parents who thoroughly missed his presence throughout weekday evenings. Ironically, it was their need to compensate for his absence, in those weekends, that slowly started to push Laurent away. Within six months he had missed one weekend. Then he started only coming home three times a month. By his second year of university his visits had dwindled to once a month. Thankfully, and despite their constant prodding, his parents got used to life without Laurent and learnt to live as a couple again, as they had before he was born.

Throughout the second part of his studies, Laurent studied in northern France, at a prestigious business school. His visits were limited to the occasional holiday visit. These visits would further reduce when he was in relationships for reasons that should appear obvious to any young dating man with a traditional Italian family. The link with his parents almost ceased to exist then. No partner was serious enough to make a mention to them. His life became secretive.

When Laurent landed a job in London, and settled down with a partner, his life was overturned and so were his priorities. His parents had recently retired and lived alone in the countryside. For his first visit in years he brought his new and serious partner. They had been together two years by then. His mother was happy to welcome them after only being allowed phone calls from her son. The home dynamic was very different as Laurent's partner and his parents did not get along so well. Nevertheless, hospitality was a golden rule and his parents did their best to make them feel at home and return whenever possible again. The house had finally witnessed another generation of the family being made.

The next time he returned, Laurent had nostalgia feelings as he drove the curvy roads leading to his ancestral home. Having returned to his old room, he found himself enraged by his parents' remodelling, a remodelling he had not been queried on. His room had disappeared in favour of a modern guest bedroom that his parents rented to help with money. And though none of his things had been trashed - they had just been put in storage, he felt like a part of him had been killed, or erased. His job had prevented him to visit for a year and half but by the time he left, he had promised his ageing mother that he would visit on a yearly basis at least. Parts of that promise was to see his parents more often, the other was to make sure that the house remained as was, authentic to his memories.

Laurent kept his promise. He came every Easter to see his parents. He made sure this was booked in his work calendar. Soon enough a little girl came along and Laurent was glad to come to his parents every holiday as a way to make his parents happy but also for him to relax. A year later there was a little boy and this was followed by another girl two years later. By then Christmas and new year holidays were always spent in Calabria along with Easter and one or two summer weeks. These were escape holidays, a way to engulf oneself in calm away from the frantic London life.

As the kids grew, Laurent and his partner felt the need to leave the city life and slow down. They believed they both had missed the education of their first child and did not want that to continue for the two others. After long discussions and arguments, they moved back to Calabria, a few hours from his parents house. Life there was different. The kids thrived and the family got closer. Sadly, tragedy hit soon after they had moved. Laurent's mother had a heart attack and died. The emergency services didn't have time to reach her in time to resuscitate her. The house was too remote. From then on Laurent kept in contact with his father a lot more.

Years passed and a routine was established. Laurent visited his father with the family once a month at least, for weekends. But as the kids grew, they were the ones that didn't feel the need to visit their grandpa. They had other things to do, better things to do according to them. Soon enough Laurent was the only one that made the trip as his partner stayed home to watch over the going-out teenagers.

When his father passed away, Laurent had already experienced a little of what his parents had more than two decades before. His eldest daughter had left the nest and life at home had irrevocably changed. Added to the emptiness nest syndrome, his parents' house became a source of arguments with his partner. Laurent did not want to sell it. Too many memories had been made in it and it was his ancestral home, the home of all homes. He didn't want to rent it either, mostly for the same reasons. He did not want to cheapen the walls. It became a financial drag on them as it sat empty and rusting, maintenance bills streaming in. Laurent proposed that they move in after retirement but his partner didn't like the idea. They reached an agreement on keeping the house as a holiday home. They would put it for holiday rent as well to pay off the maintenance costs.

Life changed one last time as their third child left the house, leaving Laurent and his partner alone in their oversized house in Catanzaro. Laurent having never really gotten attached to the house though his partner had, more arguments arose with respect to their future in their current home. After months of poisoned diners, Laurent's partner yielded. They downsized and decided to host the kids at Laurent's parents' house in the mountains when they would visit.

Years passed and the kids grew. Laurent and his partner ended up retiring in the ancestral house, leaving Catanzaro altogether. The kids rarely visited. They felt lonely but they knew this was a long time coming so they coped and found ways to occupy themselves. This was until bitterness overcame their love. Laurent's partner blamed Laurent for their isolation and ostracisation. They separated in their late 80's and Laurent's partner returned to Catanzaro. His partner died six months later, having been found three days after a fall in his own stairs. Heart broken and feeling entirely responsible, Laurent died a few weeks later. The house that he cared so much for, and that had been the reason for their demise, was sold by their children on the day of his funeral. All of his life and his memories discarded to the highest bidder.