Soul of the Home

Amethyst crystals are good things to have next to the computer

“Care for our houses….however humble, is also care of the soul. No matter how little money we have, we can be mindful of the importance of beauty in our homes.’’ These are the words of Thomas Moore in ‘Care of the Soul – how to add depth and meaning to your everyday life’.

Yesterday I visited a home where especial care and love seemed to have been taken in the arrangement of meaningful objects. Although small and simple, the home seemed imbued with the warm heart and kindness that emanated from the homemaker. I was reminded of Thomas Moore’s book and re-read parts of it last night. My thoughts had been moving in the direction of the theme of ‘home’ even before the visit yesterday.  I have fewer classes to teach now that it’s the Easter break, so in amongst meetings and admin., I’ve been cleaning up after workmen. The ‘work’ has been the renovation of the bathroom – turning it into a place of calmness and beauty.

But I’d been having a wobbly moment about the escalating expense of it all. Although I’d saved up, I started to have unsettling doubts – perhaps it was folly to have done the bathroom up, or even to live in such a big house at all. My fears whipped up by the barrage of gloomy predictions in the press and facing the reality of how the current economic climate has affected me personally.

I’m a yoga teacher so I began pondering yet again the question of ‘attachment’.  I love beautiful things. I love the process of restoring and caring for this beautiful, old house. I have a heartfelt attachment to this house. “Is this bad”? I asked myself. Moore makes more sense of it for me when he speaks about the soul of the world– anima mundi – and how this ‘world soul’ affects each individual thing, whether natural or human-made.

The hearth in the yoga room – with candles, rock from Yoga Plus in Crete and a sculpture I made

My soulful connection with this house leads me to wonder about ‘its’ soul. I wonder about the people who built this house, all the people who’ve lived here before, all the yoga students who come and go – sometimes bringing their grief or anger, fears, joy. Is my house sighing and breathing from all these memories? My house healer believes so. The energy of this house therefore, is regularly cared for with her distant healing, her recommended placing of crystals, arrangements of lilies, candles and incense.

I’m trusting in these mysteries because they resonate with my heart and gut feelings. I feel an obligation to restore, renovate and decorate this house with care and love – but it’s with the strong awareness that I’m just a transient caretaker – ultimately the house will be here and I’ll be gone.

Amanda