code: def space_before(self):
          
          spcBef = self.spcBef
          if spcBef is None:
              return None
          spcPts = spcBef.spcPts
          if spcPts is None:
              return None
          return spcPts.val
docs: The EMU equivalent of the centipoints value in
          `./a:spcBef/a:spcPts/@val`.