THE SHAPE OF THINGS

BEFORE WE’D MOVED INTO OUR CURRENT HOME, THE HOUSE HAD STOOD EMPTY FOR FOUR YEARS. It had been completed to builder’s finish, the wooden floors and dishwasher were in place, but there wasn’t a tile anywhere. Electric cables protruded from walls. The fireplace was a cavity where birds chimney-dived. It smelled unfinished. The grass had grown to a level where no lawnmower could cut through it.

I’d fallen in love with this house even before we viewed it based on the location alone: close enough to the