We have a house guest coming which has necessitated cleaning the upstairs and creating a "real" guest room. The Mister and I have so many interests that each room was overflowing with our interests and not guest ready. In short, it was a mess!
He collects radios and is a ham operator, thus, one room was just for those. I have two large looms, so one room was just for weaving. As a musician, he has everything except a bag pipe (read: five drum kits alone), so there we have a music room (which is moving to the recording studio in the fall, I hope!), and you can just imagine how very many books an English teacher has... to fill the last room which is a library.
But, one problem: no guest room.
So, yesterday was committed to moving and rearranging the entire space. Since the studio is on the project list, the music room was transitioned to a full loom and needlework studio. The back room is again a real guest room and the library is really a library. The landing is empty except for our telescope and the missionary organ. The studio is darling and full to the brim!
The guest room, though, is my favorite. It is the Airman's bedroom and has his 1880 sleigh bed, 19-teens pine chest, a spinning wheel (of course), bookshelf filled with children's books, 1920s wicker table, orphan chair, and my mother's 1940's Lane trunk. I love the space. It feels quaint, comfy, and peaceful.
As I cleaned, I thought about material possessions and the conversation my friend Sara and I had about it.
"If you think about it, we are blessed to have so many things," she suggested.
I thought a minute and responded, "I am not so sure it isn't from the Enemy, Sara. After all, we get so caught up in stuff that we forget other things that are far more important."
So, as we have cleaned, we have been selective and have opted to donate to charity what we don't really need. The result has been, well, invigorating. Less is more. Really. And, I think it is the start of trend in this house. Poor Mister. He will be like I was when I was ten and Mother got on a "tear." I hid my dolls and favorite stuffed animal at the neighbors until her fit passed.
What kind of redecorating are you doing these days??
It's so hard to downsize isn't it? I have so many Hitchcock chairs but what can be done with them? Not going to relegate something circa 1820 to the attic, but the kids like modern stuff so they don't want them. So I stick them every where and use them for little tables. I suppose I could donate them to charity, but most people around here don't know their value. We don't have a guest bedroom anymore. Used to always wake up to guests sleeping on the davenport because once they navigated the steep staircase to use the facilities, they didn't want to climb back up. So now they sleep in the living room! BTW, pictures please! The room sounds charming.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to decide what is most important to keep. We downsized a LOT and it was SO hard. Of course, now I rarely miss anything I gave away (except that copy of Oh, Jerusalem).
ReplyDeleteYour guest room makes me want to come for a visit! When Christopher moves out next month, his room becomes mine... all mine... and for guests.