Inspiration: Ten Things A Dream Home Must Have…
“Home is a place not only of strong affections, but of entire unreserve; it is life’s undress rehearsal, its backroom, its dressing room, from which we go forth to more careful and guarded intercourse, leaving behind … cast-off and everyday clothing.” Harriet Beecher Stowe
Inspiration: Ten Things A Dream Home Must Have... Home is where the heart finds peace
Last fall, I wrote a post on my Positive Kismet blog about My Dream Home, it had all the razzmatazz one could imagine, featured some truly spectacular properties, and I had fun writing it. We know that if we gathered a group of friends to chat about their dream homes, lots of wonderful things would pop up especially around space, location, design, and such. But, this time around, I chose a different route… Why? Because ‘home’ is more than the physical location we often imagine. It extends beyond that to spaces that evoke the sense of being home…
For this Daily Post prompt, Describe Your Dream Home, I decided to try a different approach and imagine things that capture our memories of home. We can step away from the usual physical items that come to mind and imagine things that really matter to us in a dream home; perhaps the obvious things we all crave in life and desire to have often in our homes; love, joy, laughter and such. You know, the things that build the energy and interior memory of a great home… the things that help us gain a new perspective on the subject.
“There is a magic in that little world, home; it is a mystic circle that surrounds comforts and virtues never known beyond its hallowed limits” Robert Southey
Inspiration: Ten Things A Dream Home Must Have... home is where our dreams of the Milky Way are nurtured
As I thought about this prompt, the famous song above, A House is Not A Home, came to mind and took me back to fun days in the 1980s when life was full of adventure and we came home full of stories and expectations. My soulful friend Luther Vandross used to sing, “A house is not a home when there’s no one there to hold you tight and no one there you can kiss goodnight…” Sure, a home without people and love is not quite a home. Even if we are single or widowed, our friends/family can bring us cheer, and there are things all of us can look for/aim for in our dream homes … Luther adds some of those to the song too and, for your karaoke pleasures, I added the lyrics to the song below… Hey, music, love and joy begin with us! 😆 Below are my Ten Things A Dream Home Must Have; my list of ten must haves…
♥The sound of laughter ringing through its walls; where dreams and dreads are equally shared and heard
♥Love embracing one and all; where hugs, happy moments, and loving admonishments are given freely
♥Food to heal and satisfy all hunger; where food joyfully prepared for the soul includes body, mind and spirit
♥A place to rest and rejuvenate; where rest is sweet and sleep is deep
♥Friends and family to chat with and celebrate; where music, dance, art and play join hands with pleasant memories
Do share some of yours. What would you add? More below. 😉
“Home, the spot of earth supremely blest, A dearer, sweeter spot than all the rest” Robert Montgomery
Inspiration: Ten Things A Dream Home Must Have... Home is Nature peeking in... a cottage by the sea
♥Peace and reason in every room; where all find their voice and a place to share their point of view
♥A blazing hearth to warm each soul; where every soul felt warmth, comfort and divine protection
♥Sunshine blessing all and flowing through every window; where the rays of the sun spread happiness and shine on all equally
♥A breath of fresh air walking through each door; where nature, water, flowers and air fill the spaces, offering occasional positive surprises
♥A welcome mat and smile at the front door; where all feel welcomed, blessed and sheltered
To think of home is to think of the emotions and memories we hold dear; both good and bad. Since we moved quite a bit during my growing years, I found that I attached experiences and events to each home and less so the physical qualities. Sure, I can see each home, when I shut my eyes and go back in my minds eye, but the homes were receptacles for the memories of the souls that inhabited them and that is what I looked for in this exercise… Below are lyrics to Luther’s song… sing along and revisit your best home memories… May all who seek shelter find a welcoming home. What about you? What are your thoughts? What ten things would your dream home have? What would be your number one must-have? Do share! Thank you. 😉
“A House Is Not A Home” (Lyrics via azlyrics.com)
A chair is still a chair
Even when there’s no one sitting’ there
But a chair is not a house
And a house is not a home
When there’s no one there to hold you tight
And no one there you can kiss goodnight
Whoa girl
A room is a still a room
Even when there’s nothing’ there but gloom
But a room is not a house
And a house is not a home
When the two of us are far apart
And one of us has a broken heart
Now and then I call your name
And suddenly your face appears
But it’s just a crazy game
When it ends, it ends in tears
Pretty little darling, have a heart
Don’t let one mistake keep us apart
I’m not meant to live alone
Turn this house into a home
When I climb the stairs and turn the key
Oh, please be there
Saying’ that you’re still in love with me, yeah
I’m not meant to live alone
Turn this house into a home
When I climb the stairs and turn the key
Oh, please be there, still in love
I said, still in love, still in love with me, yeah
Are you gonna be in love with me?
I want you and need you to be, yeah
Still in love with me
Say you’re gonna be in love with me
It’s driving’ me crazy to think
That my baby couldn’t be still in love with me
Are you gonna be? Say you’re gonna be
Are you gonna be? Say you’re gonna be
Are you gonna be? Say you’re gonna be
Well well, well well
Still in love, so in love, still in love with me
Are you gonna be?
Say that you’re gonna be
Still in love with me, yeah
With me, oh
Still in love with me, yeah
This post was inspired by a prompt from WP Daily Post: Describe your dream house. Where is it? What rooms does it have? How would you design the floor plan? What would you do in the layout and style of the house if there were no restrictions on expense or location?
Positive Motivation Tip: Home is where we come to shed our worldly burdens and rest our weary heads. Go find your place there.
Related articles
- Dream House: a fellow bloggers gorgeous home (jennhearn.wordpress.com)
- My Dream Home (hastenhome.wordpress.com)
- What Dream House Are Made Of (consumerjournaldotnet.wordpress.com)
- Reflections: On Dreams & Destiny… (eof737.wordpress.com)
PHOTO CREDITS/ATTRIBUTIONS: All Photos Harriet’s Home, Laser to Milky Way, cottage by the sea via Wikipedia.
Until Next Time…
Ask. Believe. Receive. ©
Elizabeth Obih-Frank
Mirth and Motivation
Positive Kismet
“L’âme de la maison”, the spirit of the house, is the creation of those who live in it or visit it. Without, and no matter how ugly or beautiful it is, a house is just an orderly pile of rocks, bricks or concrete.
Well said… my sentiments exactly. TY! 🙂
Nice and as usual creative. I have a mystical feeling about homes and place. One is at home in many places and I think that is not just where your spirit finds rest, but that there is also some connectedness to a greater force of being and connecting and belonging.
Anyway, thank you for this. Tired and heading to bed.
Sure, I agree. Home is more than the physical location we often imagine. It extends beyond that to other spaces that evoke the sense of being home… TY! 🙂
I want to live in your home 🙂
Home is where the heart is. Sounds corny and a bit overused, but it definitely sums up the true worth of a home.
“Home is a place not only of strong affections, but of entire un-reserve; it is life’s undress rehearsal, its back room, its dressing room, from which we go forth to more careful and guarded intercourse…”
Home is a place which all family share their living, heart, annoy and joy.:)
A home is an extension of oneself. It is a place that contains dreams, and when the door is open those dreams flow out into the world.
Dreaming of all the physical features of a dream home is fun. But you are so right about the very emotional component that make a place a “home.” Home is a comfy, positive word and should always involve love. (missing you! – will get by when I can!)
Like you, Elizabeth, I have moved too many times to count in my life. For me it is always about the warmth and love within that matters most. I feel I can make any house a home, no matter what size it is or what comforts it has or does not. It’s all about the love within.
Beautiful post!
Thanks,
b
Home is a place that will make us always want to go back and rest 🙂
I love my home…
I have some new neighbors whose house burned down in June. They are renting the place behind mine until their house is rebuilt. It has really had me thinking about the idea of ‘home.’ Not only do our things and stuff help to make up home, but also a Comfortable place to remove ourselves from the outer world for a while. Home is a sanctuary, and a blessing!
friends and friends of the kids always described our home as “cozy.” And I do want to convey those feelings when anyone walks through our doors.
Home is a place where we can be ourselves and feel safe, but the ultimate criteria for me is that it is full of the joy and peace of the Lord’s presence. Thanks for the link! 🙂
Great list, E! I would only add . . . a super comfortable bed and a quiet room for sleeping. 😀
I hope to have those ten must haves too. It would feel like a piece of heaven inside your home. The words just flowed so beautifully, bringing comfort, allowing as to dream and walk with you. Thank you. Your dream house is magical, peaceful, a refuge at the end if a hard day. Stay blessed.
* love * lots of light * an abundance of books * laughter * comfortable places for visiting friends to sleep * furry critters to snuggle with when sad * a clean table for friday evenings * houseplants in every room * music accessible throughout * still more love *
“Home is where the heart finds peace”
Regardless of size or Location
“Home” is family
I thought of Luther’s song as well. I also thought of the expression, Home is where the hear is.
Home, for me, is the one place that holds all my memories of my childhood. It’s the place that formed me and provides an anchor for me now that I’m an adult. It’s the place I left more than 30 years and several houses ago but still is home to me. Actually, it’s “home, home” to differentiate it from the home I’ve created for myself.
A few years ago, I visited the house I spent most of my childhood and teenage years in. And for the first time ever, it was empty. Seeing it like that brought me to tears. Walking through it, I could hear the voices of my grandmother, cousins, uncles, mother, aunt and everyone else who ever sought shelter beneath its roof. I cried because I never thought I’d ever see it empty. It seemed to call me (or, at least, I think it did).
Strangely enough, whenever I go to Jamaica, I never feel I’m really home until I’m in my mother’s bed. For some reason, mine doesn’t seem to do the trick!
Thanks, Elizabeth, for another beautiful post.
Marcia
First things first – love Luther and have many of his releases. Love that song and I know how very true it is from my own experience.
So my 10 things are:
My husband/family!
A dual head shower – I dream of one of those!
A dishwasher (the machine kind, not the four manual ones we have)
A round master bed (not really, but they LOOK so fantastic)
His and hers studies – one is just not enough
An ocean view and a private beach
St George stove
Solar power
Outdoor spa to seat 8
Triple garage
I want these all in my dream house! Great List. Thank you for sharing. I’m adding to my list now 🙂
Great and thanks for your feedback. We all deserve to live in our dream homes someday.