Day 356-An Abandoned House

We were running in a fairly rural area two Sundays ago when I spotted this abandoned house sitting alone on the side of a hill. The sun was in my eye but I could see even then that it was an unusual house. 

It didn't take much to convince everyone that we had to battle the cutting weeds and the steep uphill so we all could take a closer look. What we saw was as intriguing as it was bizarre.

The wooden verandah was engulfed in overgrown creepers that looked like they could eat anyone who dared come close. The ornate railings that were carved in wood and flimsily built were rotting away. It felt like Nature was reclaiming the abandoned. 

Much of the decorative spindles and carved posts together with the  scrollwork of the corner trims were already badly weathered although we could still see the paints that were applied through the dust and dirt. We were amazed that this house that looked more like a shed, was still standing.

Not only that, the carved work remained fairly intact. It was easy to tell that it had a colourful past. 

As we came totally unprepared, we couldn't get past the menacing weeds and so decided to head off after taking a few pictures.

We left with more questions than we had before we saw the house up close. 

Who built it? What kind of a person was he or she? What was it for? Why was it abandoned? What of its future?

As the others ran off, I turned back for a last look at the house that would haunt me in the weeks to come. I knew then that I had to go back.