Monday, March 9, 2015

Throw pillows are the secret of life


Yes, I have the answer: Throw pillows are the secret to life, or at least one of them. And no, I haven't lost it, nor has Martha Stewart broken into my blog. It's like this:

We bought the wooden front bench in our hallway when we moved into our house 12 years ago. I never noticed that it seemed kind of bare until recently, when I had a few rare quiet minutes and I was roaming our first floor. I decided it would look much better with a throw pillow.

This: Taking time to look at something old and see it in a different way. When does that ever happen? Never ever ever. Let alone thinking about home accessories; our latest additions are usually along the lines of a glass of vinegar sitting on our living room bookcase with an egg in it. (Sabrina science experiment.)

A couple days later, I jumped into the car on a day off work, with the sole mission of finding a throw pillow. I headed to Bed, Bath & Beyond, the store that some might mistake as being a secret to life but is most likely what heaven looks like. (With everything free, of course.) I hit the pillow area, browsed to my heart's content and found an oblong one with a cool green print. Green always makes me happy. Done!
 
This: Doing something solely for me. I hardly ever go shopping just for me anymore—it's almost always for the kids or Dave. True, this was for the house but a pillow is only something I'd notice or care about.

Then I wandered aimlessly around the store. I hovered in Bridal Registry and checked out china patterns. I ogled some nice-looking pots and pans (if my twentysomething self had known I would someday think pots and pans were sexy, she would have been very scared). I explored the bath area, redesigning the color scheme of our master bathroom in my head because I am wild and crazy that way.

This: Enjoying non-purposeful activity. It's something that's very, very hard for me. Even at home, on a day off or at night, I find it difficult to sit on the couch and just read because I am forever jumping up to do something—de-clutter, clean, get stuff ready for school for the next day, Mom job etc. etc. etc.

I brought the pillow home. Of course, nobody else even noticed it was there. But my eyes fall on it every time I walk through the front door and it makes me just a little happier. Yet another secret to life: Happiness doesn't often happen by the bulk load, but those little boosts really can mean a lot. 

7 comments:

  1. Ah the magic of a throw pillow LOL. Glad it makes you happy though :)

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  2. "Taking time to look at something old and see it in a different way." So important.

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  3. Oh I love this post (and the cushion!). Having 'idle' time is a skill we have to re-learn. I love home stores. When I grow up I'm going to have a perfect home with full sets of everything and matching sets. In the meantime, the odd new cushion does the trick! XXX

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  4. Absolutely. I have been looking for the perfect oblong throw pillow for a bench too! It has proved harder than I thought it would. I did find 2 nice new entry rugs, which make me so happy, even though others would barely notice I'm sure. Great post! It is little pops of color, the little things we do for ourselves that can make a big difference.

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  5. I love green too! I spend my idle time on Noteflight. I'm trying to make a band arrangement of Minecraft original songs.

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  6. Throw pillows-I love them too and although simply done "shopping" for fabric once in a while in a mom stupor by myself to cover it differently. Its like my version of organizing my home....what I mean by that is..it basically replaces it ;)

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  7. Okay I really miss Bed, Bath & Beyond! I know what you are saying about being able to do and enjoy a non-purposeful activity. Even if I have a few minutes to look around a store, I end up telling myself to hurry up - I could be doing something productive. Is it because we are mothers? special needs moms? I don't know. Me time is important even if we have to force ourselves to take it!

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Thanks for sharing!



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