My Dream Home Is Somebody Else's House

I will never forget the day it all happened.

And even now, after almost 13 years, a heartbreaking voyage, a failed relationship and a failed business, sometimes that it feels too terrifying and vast to name with anything but a pronoun.

It was a Sunday. May 15, 2007. I was still in Pakistan, living at my aunt's house. When the landline phone started ringing, I was in bed, lazily sleeping in. I looked at the little orange screen. It was my grandfather's number. But when I picked, someone else was talking.

That's when I understood that something was wrong, but nothing could have prepared me for the blow that came after.

"Hey, Hamza, I just wanted to say that…Zaif…he's dead. I'm sorry. "

I never even asked who was speaking. I jumped out of the bed, ran down the corridor, banged on my aunt's door. "Aunty, Granpa is dead!"

She also jumped out of bed, and we got in the car, and we raced to grandpa's house; my Dream Home.

That was all thirteen years before, when I was eight, but to this day, I remember every single detail of the House; even though I haven't returned there not even once. You see, after my grandpa's death, we found out that he was in debt, and the only way not to get that burden on us was to sell the house. So, that's what my aunty did, even if I hated her for doing so, and hated myself for letting it be sold.

With the remaining money of the sale (which was a lot), my aunt decided to bring me to Italy, where I have been living for all this time.

***

Nowadays, everyone wants a tiny little house where they can store their minimalist little lives - but I dream of something else. My dream house is the house with the wardrobe to Narnia in the attic and a secret garden in the back.

She's the kind of house who has a name and a personality. She is a character.

All I've ever wanted is to take her back, maybe adding a couple of features.

Ready? Now comes the Bobby Berk is my fairy godmother and Jeff Bezos is my generous buddy part.

First, the pool.

The waterfall is already there, so why don't put a nice comfortable pool underneath it?

It would be pleasant to have led lightening all over the edges of the pool, and a massage system built in it.

Something like this:

Then there would be a giant library, like, with every book ever printed. I would call this room the Voyage Room.

And I'm pretty much a sucker for secret passages. I want them everywhere, from the classic revolving library to the fake wall, from the super-secret bunker to the disappearing floor.

The Living Room:

This needs to be big and spacious. Ideally, I’d like to have a large seating area that’s recessed into the floor with a table in the middle. Perhaps a ‘U-Shape’ seating area. It would be lovely to have concrete and black wood, mixed with a retro-style brick wall.

Something like this.

Every room has to be themed according to some of my favorites books and movies:

For the bedroom, I'm thinking something comfy, with big windows to have natural light in the day, and some soft LED lighting in the evening. It should be completely zen and clutter-free to ease the mind at all times. A massive bed is a requirement.

And a starry ceiling at night:

My office should be motivational and inspiring. A place where nothing is beyond reach. It would be relaxing to sink on my couch, load the papers in the typewriter, and craft imaginary worlds. It should have glass walls that open onto the raging power of the waterfall.

Now, for the gym.

I love my workout routine, so this is going to be interesting.

I would like to have the gym separated from the main building because then I could jog my way there. There should also be a good sound-system built-in, and soundproofed walls, not to disturb anyone.

It would be nice if it had a glass wall.

And, finally, for the fun part.

There's not much to say, except that this would be awesome. Basically, it's a building full of swings and throwing stars (it sounds childish, but it's super fun. Maybe because it is childish).

Take a look yourself:

Also, it would be nice to have a ton of indoor slides, like this:

And an indoor paintball arena:

All things said, I want to end this article by citing from one of my favorite books: Will Grayson, Will Grayson (By John Green And David Levithan)

But they've got this boat they keep at Belmont Harbor, one of these behemoths with cherry-wood cabinets imported from Indonesia, and a rotating king-size bed stuffed with the feathers of endangered eagles and everything else. Your mom and I had dinner with the Porters on the boat years ago, and in the span of a single meal -in that two hours- the boat went from feeling like the most extraordinarily luxurious place to just being a boat.

But people can't be bought on credit, and they aren't reducible.

So, I would love to get back my grandpa's house, but most importantly I would like to live there with people I love, because, at the end of the day, it's love that matters, and it's love that prevails.