So often in this modern world we see an image of perfection. Perfect looking homes, advertising for products to achieve perfect hair, perfect skin, perfect food, perfect lives.
We are bombarded with advertising about things to give us a nicer home, a better car. We see things to make us more attractive, that will make us happier, to make us better.
When we purchase these dreams dangled in front of us, sure we feel better for a while. But it's a hollow kind of happiness. Soon we realize we are no happier then we were before. The shiny-newness of the car fades. The excitement of the dream home wears off, and we are left to face the truth of who we are once again. The fact remains that we are the sum of what is inside of us, not of that which we are able to display on the outside.
There comes a certain point after obtaining the essentials of life like a safe place to live, warmth, proper clothing and adequate food at which we reach a kind of stand still.
The extent of these basics is not as high as modern day media would have us believe. Beyond a certain point the real truth resides; If we are not happy without it, then we will never be happy with it.
A couple of photos of a lovely little trip we had to a cheap little holiday house near the beach. I cant even remember where it was now but I do remember it was freezing!
No amount of lovely belongings can nor ever will change who we are at the centre of our being. That if we cannot have a sense of like or acceptance for the person deep inside us, then there is nothing we can buy which will change that. It simply aids as a distraction for a little while.
You know one of my very favourite things to do? To have a cuppa with a person who is not scared to show their true colours, to share who they are at their heart of hearts. To sit down and discuss all that is real, and challenging. To have the kind of conversations that are rich, and deep, and most importantly real. An honest account of they are and where they are going, bumpy roads and all. I love these kinds of conversations. To get past the everyday polite chit chat and get to the stuff that matters, the very marrow of life. To encourage each other through fears and uncertainties, to laugh at our imperfections. To respectfully share thoughts and ideas even when they differ from one another. To learn and to live. To be in authentic relationships.
The things we see on the media which tells us how to have a happier life....they are not real. After a certain point the things we see and desire simply become fluff. Sure, sometimes fluff is nice to soften the harsh edges we run up against in life, but in the end the fact remains it is still just fluff and can only go so far. The things that truly help make life brighter are in the relationships we have around us. When we have the opportunity to be who we are on the inside with others, to share, to laugh....perhaps even sometimes, to cry.
This past week or so I have had a couple of such experiences, which have truly helped to fill my tank. Once was when I went to a friend/work colleges house for the first time. I entered her cottage and it was completely un-pretentious. There was nothing fancy about her home on the surface. It was a completely ordinary, neat family home. But within the home held such familiarity and beauty. There were papers overflowing on the desk, books strewn over the kitchen table, memories and reminders adorning the walls. Their house told their families story and despite it being my first time there, it was somehow exactly what I had imagined her home to be. Warm, authentic, beautiful and comforting.
This morning I had another such soul filling encounter. A dear friend popped over for coffee, which progressed somehow into a 4 1/2hr catch-up. We drank hot coffee from oversized mugs, I pottered and made a batch of pumpkin soup. Coffee turned into lunch, which meandered into coffee again. Me wearing my husbands trackies, her off the farm. The floors not swept, beds not made, crazy little Scottish Terrier getting up to trouble, washing machine whirring in the background.
Yes, my house may not be shiny, my garden may contain far too many weeds, my roses need pruning, my car is a little beat up, my curves a little too curvy. But I feel so very blessed to have such wealth in authentic deep relationships with beautiful family and friends. These things - these people are the real treasures in life, and I reckon I must be one of the richest people around.
Much love,
Emma
xx
We are bombarded with advertising about things to give us a nicer home, a better car. We see things to make us more attractive, that will make us happier, to make us better.
When we purchase these dreams dangled in front of us, sure we feel better for a while. But it's a hollow kind of happiness. Soon we realize we are no happier then we were before. The shiny-newness of the car fades. The excitement of the dream home wears off, and we are left to face the truth of who we are once again. The fact remains that we are the sum of what is inside of us, not of that which we are able to display on the outside.
There comes a certain point after obtaining the essentials of life like a safe place to live, warmth, proper clothing and adequate food at which we reach a kind of stand still.
The extent of these basics is not as high as modern day media would have us believe. Beyond a certain point the real truth resides; If we are not happy without it, then we will never be happy with it.
No amount of lovely belongings can nor ever will change who we are at the centre of our being. That if we cannot have a sense of like or acceptance for the person deep inside us, then there is nothing we can buy which will change that. It simply aids as a distraction for a little while.
You know one of my very favourite things to do? To have a cuppa with a person who is not scared to show their true colours, to share who they are at their heart of hearts. To sit down and discuss all that is real, and challenging. To have the kind of conversations that are rich, and deep, and most importantly real. An honest account of they are and where they are going, bumpy roads and all. I love these kinds of conversations. To get past the everyday polite chit chat and get to the stuff that matters, the very marrow of life. To encourage each other through fears and uncertainties, to laugh at our imperfections. To respectfully share thoughts and ideas even when they differ from one another. To learn and to live. To be in authentic relationships.
The things we see on the media which tells us how to have a happier life....they are not real. After a certain point the things we see and desire simply become fluff. Sure, sometimes fluff is nice to soften the harsh edges we run up against in life, but in the end the fact remains it is still just fluff and can only go so far. The things that truly help make life brighter are in the relationships we have around us. When we have the opportunity to be who we are on the inside with others, to share, to laugh....perhaps even sometimes, to cry.
This past week or so I have had a couple of such experiences, which have truly helped to fill my tank. Once was when I went to a friend/work colleges house for the first time. I entered her cottage and it was completely un-pretentious. There was nothing fancy about her home on the surface. It was a completely ordinary, neat family home. But within the home held such familiarity and beauty. There were papers overflowing on the desk, books strewn over the kitchen table, memories and reminders adorning the walls. Their house told their families story and despite it being my first time there, it was somehow exactly what I had imagined her home to be. Warm, authentic, beautiful and comforting.
This morning I had another such soul filling encounter. A dear friend popped over for coffee, which progressed somehow into a 4 1/2hr catch-up. We drank hot coffee from oversized mugs, I pottered and made a batch of pumpkin soup. Coffee turned into lunch, which meandered into coffee again. Me wearing my husbands trackies, her off the farm. The floors not swept, beds not made, crazy little Scottish Terrier getting up to trouble, washing machine whirring in the background.
Yes, my house may not be shiny, my garden may contain far too many weeds, my roses need pruning, my car is a little beat up, my curves a little too curvy. But I feel so very blessed to have such wealth in authentic deep relationships with beautiful family and friends. These things - these people are the real treasures in life, and I reckon I must be one of the richest people around.
Much love,
Emma
xx
