Moments Supplementary Reader Chapter 8 A House Is Not A Home

One Sunday, he smelled something strange. Then he saw smoke coming through the same part of the ceiling. Soon the whole house was engulfed with flames. Somehow they escaped the fire.

The fire had engulfed the whole house. They were not left with nothing. He had been wearing a single dress and had no shoes. He had to borrow some tennis shoes from his aunt. He had no books or homework. He had lost his backpack. He felt embarrassed to face anyone in the new school. That is why he did not want to go to the school.

The author’s companion is his red tabby cat. They love each other very much. She used to sit in his lap, and fall asleep in his pocket. She is never far away from him.The author’s cat had got lost when the fire had broken out in his house. Actually, the cat had been terrified by the fire and had gone over a mile away. A woman had found her. She found the author’s phone number on the cat’s collar. But the phones had been destroyed. She somehow traced the author and brought his cat back. Thus, the author was reunited with his cat because of the woman’s kindness.

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The author’s companion is his red tabby cat. They love each other very much. She used to sit in his lap, and fall asleep in his pocket. She is never far away from him.

They grouped and moved towards the front door and came into the front yard. He went to the neighbours to call the fire department while his mother ran back into the house to save important documents.

As a teenager, the author felt the challenges posed to him by the various kinds of changes occurring in his life including the change of school, separation from friends and teachers, change of house, loss of things carrying emotional attachment, meeting new people, making new friends, etc.

The author’s father had died when he was young. His mother did not want to lose his memories to the fire. Besides, she had to save the important documents to ensure a good life to the author.

The fire had left them with no house to live in and nothing they could call their own. They had no or hope for the future. The life needed to be restarted. It stopped them from grieving because many urgent needs were to be fulfilled.

After the fire incident, people at his new school treated the author sympathetically. On the next day, they behaved rather strangely. They took him to the gym class. They had collected many things for him there. They all had contributed the things he needed to help him cope with the situation. People introduced themselves to him. They even invited him to their houses.

A house is made up of wall and roof. It can catch fire and get destroyed. But a home is where love and relations are. Thus, the fire in the house can not burn the home. In the author’s case, the fire has destroyed everything. But when he has his mother, his cat and his friends with him, he feels any place to be his home. Thus, the title clarifying the difference between the two is perfectly justified.

The house was completely burned down. The author could not see his cat anywhere. The thoughts of the new school, the fire and the missing cat–weminded him about the loss. It made him cry.

What Makes a Home is not Binani Cement But Love and Care.
A home is not made of cement and bricks only Binani cement can make a lasting building, but not a home. To make a house a home we need people living there who are bonded with love and care. It may not always be a perfect place. One may find things piled up here and there. But it is at home we begin our morning and share most precious moments with our loved ones. It is filled with tender touches and smells. It is here we share not only joys but sorrows. When we fall sick we are cared for in home by our dear and near ones. Home is always a sweet place to love and live.

One of my best friends had to undergo an unfortunate experience. Once when he and his family were out of the house for a week, their house was completely ransacked by the thieves. The thieves left nothing at all in their house. Nothing at all! They were really shocked. I brought my friend to my home and gave him all that he needed. He shared my room for one week until his home was reset for living. During those days I learned a great lesson in sharing.