Curating spaces that create comfort.
You don't realize how much your environment influences you until it changes. Mine's shifting pretty dramatically at the moment.
My grandmother has what some might describe as "refined taste." She's very good at putting together fashion-forward rooms while maintaining a very classic, elegant aesthetic. That just means I had to be careful what I touched when I was growing up. We all did. I learned the art of fluffing throw pillows before I learned to throw a baseball. She wouldn't get angry if you did it wrong; she'd just redo it. As a kid, it was a bit intimidating. Now, it's honestly kind of impressive.
She likes what she likes.
Growing up, my mom wasn't as picky with throw pillows. At our house, it was the throw blankets. Couch corners were adorned with them, and each had a signature fold that differed slightly from the others. In high school, when I would throw parties, I always worried those blankets would be what got me busted—I suck at draping them the right way. Luckily, my friend Bryan could mimic the folds perfectly. Or at least, passably. Mom would still fix them, but in the same sort of after-thought kind of way that nana does with her pillows.
I keep a pretty clean living space. When my place starts getting cluttered or messy, that's a red flag. It probably means that things could start sliding off the rails. I know that now, but back when I was in college, that's why my therapist recommended I start using a happy light—one of those little light therapy box things that supposedly mimics the sun in order to boost mood, energy, sleep etc... I'd been seriously depressed for months, so I was open to just about anything that would make me feel good enough to go about my daily life again, rather than locking myself in my getting-messier-by-the-day apartment. I remember wanting the energy to do the stack of dishes in the sink but not knowing how to get it.
The happy light didn't solve everything, but it kinda acts like the first domino for me. Sometimes the thought of it makes me laugh—using the happy light with my morning coffee like I'm a little plant getting regular sunlight and water. That's actually what led me to get house plants back then.
Greening up my space made me feel good. It still does.
That's what's been missing during my move: that happy light. I hadn't even realized it. So I set it up and made a designated space for my morning ritual. Right next to the reading chair with the throw pillow and blanket draped across the corner.
Our Daily MAP Year Prompt
70/365
What do you do to make your surroundings feel more like... you?
onward.
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