Dreaming of Home

 
For the last couple of years I have had a recurring dream. I live in a house that I love- it's always different and never actually my real house- but I'm having some sort of decorating/space dilemma when I suddenly remember I have this entire wing of the house that I had forgotten I even had. It's usually down some stairs and is multi-level and open space and full of furniture and household goods that I have also somehow managed to forget I have and I get so excited because I have all of these options and all of my space issues will be solved and now I don't have to give up the house I love because I can make it everything I need. 

Well, I had no idea where this dream was coming from until last August when Emma went back to school and took all of her worldly possessions with her, leaving me with a new space to decorate. I quickly realized it made me feel the same way the dream did, especially when I furnished the room with items I had tucked here and there only buying a can of paint for my project.

I had the same experience yet again, when we moved our dining table to the front part of our family room and dragged a couple of cozy chairs to the dining room which happens to house our only fireplace and which we've never gotten to use to it's full potential.

We've been talking about doing this for several months, knowing that the winter months were likely to be difficult, and really wanting to root ourselves in home and to make the very best of the situation. We never got past the idea of dragging cozy chairs in here but as soon as we did that I got that dreamy excited feeling and I started walking around the house pinching a nightstand from here, a lamp from there, a couple of throws, baskets, accessories...better grab that ottoman and that stack of new books! Before I knew it I had an entirely new room and the only thing I bought was an extension cord. The feeling was so much more satisfying than going out and buying all new things. 

This wasn't just a shift of furniture but a shift in perspective. This room calls to us. I have read more in the last month then I have in a long time. I plop into one of these chairs and instantly feel relaxed. I already know that I'm going to miss it this spring when the floor plan gets flip flopped again but what a wonderful thing it will be to look forward to next winter. It has me rethinking how we use our spaces and what that might mean for future renovations some of which I am sitting in this chair and planning for later in 2021- I hope.

I have been meaning to write this post for a month but you know what a month it has been. Right now I am sitting in the keeping room, fire roaring, chai latte beside me, Louis Armstrong serenading me while snow falls outside. I have a lovely view of it through the french doors and into the garden. It is everything I imagined it would be back in the spring when I pictured it covered in snow. It is the best spot in the house right now. I'm not the only one who thinks so. 

Sometimes dreams do come true.