A Respite for My Spirit

Last year my husband and I added a "four seasons porch" to our little house. Living in South East Texas, the heat and humidity of our summers makes sitting out in the yard less than pleasant to me. I can't believe the hours I used to spend laying in the sun to get a tan as a teenager. Although, that was in Southern California, and the temperatures at the beach were always heavenly. Southern California weather, a subject for a blog all on it's own. =)

I love it when the sun shines in, and at night, we have a fence around our yard that offers all of the privacy we feel we need. I call that room my "happy room". It is impossible to be anything but calm and at peace while out there.

I'm an early riser and am usually up by 6AM. I make coffee, feed my two kitties and then go out into my "piece of paradise". I open all of the windows, prop my feet up on the footstool, listen to the neighbors going off to work and the birds as they begin to twitter as dawn breaks. The breeze flows into the open windows and over my face like fragrant soft silk. I breath the fresh air in deeply, slowly sip my first cup of coffee and plan my day.

Throughout the day, I will often just go out there and sit and read, or just enjoy a moment of relaxation. I think that the orderliness of the decor there is part of what speaks to my inner being. I need order especially when life becomes chaotic. Order in my surroundings is something that becomes a refuge of sorts for me. In my place of order I can sort out the elements of the chaos and make sense of it all. I guess this is a personality trait because my husband doesn't need order and has been confounded over the years trying to understand and adjust to my need for it. We've been married for 48 years and we are almost there. =)

I hope that you find a place in your world where you can go to find that respite for your soul. It doesn't have to be a room. Even just a corner away from the traffic of your home. Build for yourself, in your corner, the ambiance that most brings you pleasure. Is it flowers? A fragrant candle or two? A comfortable chair is a must. Consider the color of the covering on the chair. If you love bright colors, then make your space bright. I think you get where I'm going with this. This is about you so make it yours and fill it with things that YOU like.

We all deserve a place where we can go that is just ours. Make that happen for yourself. I strongly urge you to do that. You deserve it and owe it to yourself. It will offer your spirit a respite as well.

Until next time,

Mary