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Visiting our grandparents in the village by Ann Wood

Like every vacation, my brother Martin and I went to visit our grandparents in the village. Our parents, Monica and Eric, worked a lot as they are both famous doctors. Our father is a vascular surgeon and mother is a cardiac surgeon, they work in their private hospital in Dallas Texas. I'm fifteen and my name is Jade and my brother Martin is my twin. Grandma's name is Martha and our grandfather's name is Jim. As every year, our cousins Marcus, Reni, John, Adam, Tim, Barbara, Rebecca, Jack, Melanie and Mareike will be with us in the village. Their parents are also doctors and work at our parents' hospital. Aunt Mia is a gynecologist and Uncle George is an abdominal surgeon, my aunt Margaret is a neurologist and neurosurgeon and Uncle Bob is an orthopedist. We are one big family, mom has a brother and a sister and dad has two brothers and a sister who are also doctors. Dad's older brother Uncle Michael is a rheumatologist and his wife Aunt Jeanette is a stomatologist. Dad's little brother Uncle Thomas is a pediatrician and his wife Aunt Beatrice is a dermatologist. Aunt Cynthia, Dad's sister is a hematologist and Uncle Brian is an oncologist. Dad's parents live in Mom's parents' village, and their houses are right next to each other. Grandma Annabelle and Grandpa Roystan are also retired doctors like Mom's parents. After retirement, both families bought semi-detached houses in the countryside. We all love to go there on weekends and holidays. Our cousins are around our age. The youngest are the twins Melanie and Mareike who are ten years old, the oldest are me and my brothers, Marcus and Adam, Reni, Tim and John are thirteen, Barbara is eleven, Rebecca is sixty and Jack is fourteen. We are very friendly, it doesn't matter that we have a difference in years. We take care of each other and help our grandparents. They raise animals and work the gardens, they also have an orchard and a vineyard. The houses are by the shore of the lake, with a very large yard and gardens. A small river passes by the village, where we go fishing. And in the summer we bathe there and swim or sunbathe. In winter we go for a walk in the forest or play at home by the fire. I love vacations in the countryside, I feel free there, and I have time to write poetry. I like to help my grandmothers when they cook or make sweets. Each house is four stories above ground and two below ground. The cellars, laundry room, game room and garages are located in the underground floors. On the second level of the underground floors there is a large kitchen and dining room, and a recreation room. On the first floor, there are two bedrooms and one large living room, with a bathroom and toilet for each bedroom, a study and a library. On the second floor there are four bedrooms each with bathroom and toilet and a recreation room. On the third and fourth floors there are four bedrooms each with a bathroom and toilet and a small living room. A total of 28 bedrooms in the two houses, there is room for all of us. In the yard there are many farm buildings, two large wells, a large stable with horses and ponies.
Today we decided to ride the bikes and take a boat ride on the river. It's sunny outside, and the first birds are returning from warmer countries. Today we saw a family of storks building a nest on the chimney of our house, and a family of swallows built a nest under our roof. While walking through the woods the other day we found a doe with a wounded leg. We took her with us to take care of her. I bandaged her leg and, and we gave her hay and water, I put her in one of the cribs in the barn, with the little calves. We cared for the doe every day until she was well and safe to walk on her own. When her leg healed, the doe would not leave us, and we left her on the estate. The ten days passed imperceptibly, in fun and games.
When the vacation was over and we had to go back to Dallas, we were all sad to say goodbye to the doe. But we knew that we would soon see her again, since it was the end of the school year, and we would be in the village, with our grandparents, all summer. Our parents came on Saturday and on Sunday evening we all said goodbye to the doe and our grandparents. In Dallas, we all live near each other and visit each other often. The hospital is nearby from our house as well as the school where we all study. There is a large park near our house, with climbing frames, swings, slides and an outdoor gym. There is also a gym with a swimming pool nearby, as well as a tennis court. We all like to play sports and go there often. As you already know I like to write poetry and my brother plays piano and guitar. I also play both instruments, and we often do concerts. My cousins also play some piano, some violin or cello.
So we went back to school and got together with our friends. Everyone tells how their spring break was, what they did, where they went. And we're all counting down the days until the end of the school year. So our vacation passed with a lot of joy, fun and games. We are looking forward to the summer to go to the village again and playing with our doe.

Short story by Ann Wood