Open to the Elements
My family. My house. 2015.
Huts.
Structures of wood on stilts.
Unsealed.
Open to the elements.
Exposed.
When we began to build our house in La Mosquitia, we knew we wanted it to be of wood and on concrete stilts. I kept telling Alex that I wanted the floors sealed and the walls to completely meet the ceiling and roof.
In an effort to get into our house more quickly, we left the floors as bare-wood planks with spaces between each one. We had exterior walls and an open overhang.
Our home was then placed on the back burner while we built the school. Every ounce of energy went into the school. We live next door to the school, which means work never ceases.
Here we are 6 years from our move-in date. Our floors are still open. I have come to love this part of my home. I can sweep and the dirt falls right down through the cracks. We have interior walls, but only a door on one bedroom. There is still a space between the roof and the walls.
Our home is breezy. And open.
We have lots of insect friends. We have lots of furry friends.
Sometimes, they overstay their welcome. The furry ones have pushed my boundaries.
I once wrote about the rat that chews on the underneath portion of our floor right beside my bed. He is on a timer... at exactly 4:00 AM each morning, he begins to gnaw. It is an annoying gnaw, a chewing, a scraping and gnashing of teeth.
And it always wakes me up.
We have tried everything from traps, to eucalyptus, to hot water poured on him, to attempts with a machete to poke him through the cracks.
Nothing. He is a ninja.
Sometimes he and his siblings or offspring dance around my house at night. I wonder if they laugh at us as they chew on tomatoes and play with popcorn kernels.
Living open means elements enter.
There is a deep spiritual parallel in here. I may have to write about it tomorrow.
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