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“Do you live here?”
“No.”
Her eyes scrunched. “Have you ever lived in it?”
“I have not.”
She nodded. “Would you like to show it to me?”
“Very much so.” I led her up the side steps of the wraparound veranda and was on my way to the front door when she put her hand on my arm.
“Wait. Tell me about the outside first.” She pointed to a sitting area in the center section near the front door, then to the view.
I took her hand and led her to the teak benches I’d built and affixed directly to the veranda’s support columns. She ran her hand over the carved wood. “This is beautiful. Are you the artisan?”
“I am.”
“Again, exquisite.” She sat down, facing away from the door. “North?” she asked, pointing in front of her.
“Yes.”
“Auspicious,” she said with a nod of her head. She looked over at the parked truck, then at the dirt road. “The gate faces north as well, yes?”
I smiled. “It does.”
Jaicon stood, clasped her hands behind her, walked to the door, and waited. When I opened it, she removed her shoes before stepping inside.
“The design is traditionalnaalukettu, meaning a quadrangular structure built around a courtyard or open space.”
“May I?” she asked.
“Of course.”
I followed her into the foyer, separated from the great room by a two-sided fireplace. She walked to the right; I went left.
“This would be a sitting area.” I motioned to the empty space.
Jaicon spun in a circle and looked up. “The vaulted ceilings are lovely.” She continued to the right, through an archway. “Kitchen and…”
“Dining room.”
“Ah. Makes sense. And on the opposite side?”
“A sitting room in front. Behind it, an office.”
I watched her enter each room, spin in a circle, then go on to the next.
“A bedroom to your left.”
Jaicon stuck her head in the door but did not enter the room.
“A bathroom and another bedroom?” She pointed.
“Yes.”
“What is this room?” she asked when she reached the rear of the house.
“It could be used for meditation.” I walked inside, and she followed. “Or a guest suite since it has a full bath.”
