House for sale

I remember hearing a male voice say, “Everything has changed.” I looked up from the dining table I had set for lunch and looked around. No one was there and nothing had changed. It did not even strike me as odd that I heard a voice, yet no one was there. In my head I said, “What are you saying? Nothing has changed. Everything is the same.” Now I know. That voice was the sound of my stroke. It brought no pain, just a lot of sleepiness and two years of blank days.

In four days — it took that long for all of us to discover my stroke — I was in the hospital always asleep. Then my youngest daughter brought me to her house where for weeks I stared into space. Then my eldest daughter whisked me away and set me up in her apartment, which was for sale. Finally that apartment was sold and I had to find my own place. I chose to live in Makati. Then I realized that the voice was right. For me everything had changed.

My neurologist said it would take me two years to recover from my stroke. I think she meant physical recovery because, now that I am in my fourth year and maybe 85 percent recovered, I realize that those two years were my blankest years. Then, in my third year, I began to look for myself. Now in my fourth year, I am defining myself. You see, I have changed. Everything in me has changed. That’s what the voice meant.

The first thing I have to do is sell my beautiful house that once I loved so much, but now I do not use any more. I must sell it and have some liquidity set aside for my mother and me and our emergencies — she, her Alzheimer’s, me, my stroke. That must be done soon. I have been dragging myself on it and so for four years nothing much has happened.

The house, designed by Jorge Yulo, is made of concrete and steel, in response to its environment. Laguna is famous for termites. It now needs painting very badly. The cogon roof is being carried away by the kingfishers who feed on the small fish in my pond. My pond, which began with only three carp, now has about 40. I am selling them to whoever buys the house. I love them all but not enough to move back. There are also a few janitor fish who eat the frogs, my caretaker tells me. They have a smaller harvest of frogs now and it is no longer so noisy. This makes me smile.

The cogon roof needs to be changed into something else: tiles, more cogon, whatever the buyer wants. The cogon is gone in parts, thanks to the birds, and what remains has ferns and other plants growing on it so beautifully, I don’t want to have it removed. The last big typhoon Milenyo blew away a small part of the roof over my studio. I speak of the galvanized roof that was under the cogon. I didn’t worry about the kingfishers raiding my pond and my roof because it was galvanized and safe underneath. But now the birds have won and the roof needs to be changed.

The pond’s natural cleaning system is now open to the elements where once it was covered with coconut timber. But coconut timber needs to be changed frequently and I have not cared enough to spend the money to change it because I am conserving whatever money I have for some emergency that may occur. And I don’t have that much money. That’s why I have to sell my beloved house. Please buy it. The price is also greatly reduced.

It is not ideal for starting families, unless they want to majorly renovate, but it is ideal for people who are about to retire, who are looking for peace and quiet in their lives, and a big garden to putter around in. What a joy this garden is! You can plant anything and it will grow. Milenyo or a typhoon of that caliber can come and knock down a few trees, but they will grow back. It is a house I loved and I will turn over my love for it for free. You will not regret buying this house. It was built for me. I live alone. I think it would be perfect for a couple of gay people who just want to live together and enjoy life. It is near enough Ayala’s Greenfields, less than 20 minutes away. It is a perfect place for enjoyment.

Also because the house needs repair, the price has gone down but not the lot size. It still stands on 1,400 square meters, eight lots all together. It sits between two streets so there is a front and back entrance.

I have a new realtor to whom I give it exclusively. His name is Tony Gomez, a kind man who promises to do his best and sell it quickly. If you are interested in the house, please call him at 414-2882 and 414-1414. You can also get in touch with him through his email realtor@i-manila.com.ph. Please call him only if you are interested in buying the house. I do not like people who go simply because they are curious. Curiosity is not welcome but potential buyers are.

If you are looking for a house or if you want to help me, please call Tony Gomez. The house is just an hour away from Manila. The dirt road that led to it is cemented now. Everything is almost perfect.

Everything has changed, the voice said, announcing my stroke. Now, four years later, I realize he was right and I pray that we sell my house soon. Please, please, please. Let it sell soon.

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Send your comments to secondwind.barbara@gmail.com or lilypad@skyinet.net. Or text 0917-8155570. Please keep your bible verses to yourself. I just delete them anyway.