The personal vs. the impersonal

Recently, one of my co-workers and I were discussing a photograph that we saw in a magazine. The photo showed a woman posed in her home. The home was lovely and it was obvious that a decorator had spent a lot of money to make it look that way. Despite its loveliness, the home looked so impersonal to me. When I mentioned it to my co-worker, she had trouble comprehending what I was meant.

 

I had to explain it to her--that it looked as though the objects in the home had been chosen strictly for their decorative features, and that they probably meant nothing to the owner. Her response, was, "So what? Isn't everyone's home like that?" I was equally flabbergasted--"You mean to tell me that you think most people just have 'things' in their homes? That they don't care about the objects they surround themselves with?" It turns out that, indeed, that was her belief. And maybe she's right; from what I've seen of most people's homes, they are just filled with things. And, other than personal photos, there's probably not a lot that people would grieve over if it were lost.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, or if you know me personally, you know that this is the exact opposite of how I live and how I decorate.  Everything--everything--in my home means something to me; otherwise I wouldn't have it there.  The sweet ladies who came in to unpack my boxes even commented, "You have the best stories!" 

 

Hearing their words made me start thinking about those wonderful stores.  I miss having someone  who shares in those memories, those shared stories.  So, since you guys are my wonderfully patient audience, and I love  to tell stories, I'm going to start a regular feature called Show and Tell Sunday where I "show" some of my favorite things, and then "tell" their stories.  Please feel free to share your favorite things and their stories in the comments.

And what about you?  Do you surround yourself with meaningful things?  Or do you prefer a sleek, decorator look?

 

The three biggest treasures I have at home!