I have been more relaxed today than I can remember being in a very long time. Bill and I spent a lot of time and exerted a lot of effort this week on reorganizing and redecorating. I suppose there are a couple of reasons that I took such pleasure in the results.
First, I appreciate the sense of accomplishment that comes from making do with what we have. We didn't go out a buy new furniture or artwork, not even so much as a new wastepaper basket. We refashioned the old stuff, cleaned it up and shuffled it around. Like birds we weaved our nest from the objects available to us. It reminds me of when as a kid I used to make a clubhouse with my friends, furnishing it with discarded objects from our various homes. There was magic in the way we were able to create a sense of place from shabby rejects. It is a gift to suddenly see old things in new ways.
Not only did we transform our old belongings we also found a place for everything and put everything in its place. This had a tranquilizing effect on me (as it would for any good obsessive-compulsive). I suppose that as someone who does not always feel certain that I will find my place in the world or even that I have a place in the world, there is comfort in knowing that at least the CDs and books are tucked safely away.
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