The House Chose Us - Charlotte Flynn
Charlotte's Sonoma Journey
This is the second of three stories about Charlotte's relationship with Sonoma.
🟩 I Visited Sonoma and Imagined Living Here - Chapter 1
🟨 The House Chose Us - Chapter 2 (You are reading this story.)
🟥 I Built a Life in the Sonoma Community - Chapter 3
Click on the title above to read Chapter 3 of Charlotte’s Journey
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Bill and I had decided that Sonoma was where we wanted to retire, but finding our home came down to a bit of serendipity. A model home caught our attention, although someone else had the first opportunity to buy it. Then the telephone rang. The other buyer had changed course, and the house was available. We returned immediately and placed a deposit. Everything fell into place so easily that I have often said the house chose us.
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My husband Bill and I moved to Sonoma when we retired. We had spent years visiting from the Bay Area, and by then we knew this was where we wanted to live.
Our home came to us through what felt like pure luck.
While exploring the possibility of moving to Sonoma, we looked at several model homes. One particular house caught our attention, but we were told that someone else had first rights to purchase it when it became available.
We liked the house, but there was nothing more we could do. We continued with our plans and waited to see what might happen.
A week or two later, we received a phone call. The prospective buyer had decided not to move forward. The model home was back on the market.
We immediately returned, placed a deposit, and before long we owned a home on Sonoma's east side.
I have often said that the house chose us.
It felt even more meant to be because the home came furnished as a model. Much of the furniture we already owned matched the decorating style perfectly. We did not have to struggle to make the house feel like ours. Everything seemed to fall into place.
Bill soon found a golf club in Green Valley. He was an avid golfer and happily made the drive for his regular golf days. It became part of our retirement routine.
A year after we moved, my mother joined us in Sonoma. She had been living in the Chicago area and was in her late eighties. My brother and sister had both moved away from Illinois, so it made sense for her to be closer to family.
We helped her move into Merrill Gardens, the senior living community near the library. She lived there for about seven years before she passed away.
Having her nearby was one of the greatest gifts of those years. We were able to spend much more time together, and she absolutely loved Sonoma. She found it beautiful, peaceful, and welcoming.
The house gave Bill and me a place to begin our retirement. Sonoma gave us something even larger: a place where our family could be closer and where a new part of our lives could begin.
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Charlotte and Bill found their Sonoma home after another buyer decided not to purchase it.
The model home came furnished, and their existing furniture fit its style unusually well.
The experience left Charlotte feeling that the house had chosen them.
Moving Charlotte's mother to Sonoma gave the family seven meaningful years together nearby.
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This story was created from a recorded conversation between Charlotte Flynn and Don Lundgren as part of the Sonoma Stories project. The conversation was edited for clarity and length while preserving Charlotte's experiences, reflections, and voice. Charlotte was given the opportunity to review and correct the story before publication.
