Where The Heart Is

Right now we are in the middle of a move. As in: right now there are big, burly, manly men packing boxes, moving my furniture and generally taking my house apart.

Trust me, that sounds way hotter than it actually is. One of these lovely gentlemen walked in the door, shook my hand and asked to see the lavatory, at which point one of his delightful chums laughed and said "oh man, he is going to blow that thing UP".

Indeed.

But I digress...

There is nothing like a move to make you step back and really look at things. For us, it usually means a fairly intensive process of cleaning out closets, throwing away food that expired when Clinton was in office, donating clothes that we haven't worn since college (I STILL love that green flannel), and generally paring down our lives.

Its amazing how as you primp and preen a house for staging, you remember all over again what made you originally fall in love with it. The bones start to emerge, the decorative features start to stand out again, and you notice less of the old, drafty windows and more of the charm of original 16 pane, double hung wooden sashes.

And before long, you start to think to yourself "DAMN, this is a nice place!"

The thing is, having a house is a lot like marriage. Or any long-term relationship for that matter.

You search and search and search for the right one. You put an offer in with your heart in your throat, jumping every time the phone rings, hoping that it's "the one".

Once things fall into place, you move in. No matter what the original bones were, you set out to make it your own, painting, rearranging and customizing.

The longer you live in it, the more junk starts to accumulate. Rooms acquire clutter, and when you walk into a room, you see less of the room and more of the "stuff".

I'm realizing now that it's important to step back every once in a while, peel away the stuff, and really appreciate the space (or relationship) for what it is.

Clean the windows, paint the outside, plant some flowers, do whatever is necessary in your relationship to make certain that you continue to appreciate one another and don't get distracted with all the "stuff".

Because in relationships just as in houses, no matter how little you appreciate your current dwelling, someone else would love to live there.

Maybe I'm feeling sentimental because my grandfather just passed, or maybe because my sister just got married, or maybe because I'm in the middle of completely uprooting and moving my whole family.

Whatever it is, it doesn't make it any less important to take time today and celebrate all the places that your heart resides, both the physical and the emotional.