29/11/2024
As November fades, it feels less like an ending and more like a new beginning for our family. Last month’s floods didn’t just disrupt our lives—they scarred the heart of who we are: our home.
This house, our refuge and constant through the years, had stood untouched by misfortune—until last October, when the floods came, cruel and unrelenting, seeping into the soul of this beloved place.
This house, over 200 years old, is more than walls and a roof—it’s my mother’s legacy, her heart. Passed down from her great-grandfather, a Scottish man who came to Thailand over a century ago to work for the British Borneo Company, it began as the company’s office before he purchased it, along with the land now home to the iconic 137 Pillars House Hotel. I grew up here, and though I spent less time in my teenage years, this house has always been a part of me. At 11, we transformed its colonial black-and-white facade into a warm Mediterranean orange, reflecting my parents’ heritage. It’s a home filled with love, where my my sister had her wedding here, and I too was married in this cherished place, and countless treasured memories were made.
Then, the floods came, leaving devastation in their wake. The damage was so deep, it felt like losing a part of ourselves, a place that held generations of love and memories. But even in heartbreak, resilience emerged. My sister and brother-in-law, gifted designers, stepped in, envisioning not just restoration but renewal. Piece by piece, they are giving the house a new life, one filled with promise.
Once a symbol of our past, this house now stands as a beacon of hope, reminding us that even when life shakes us, we can rebuild—and in that, find beauty, new beginnings, and love waiting to grow again.