Stories of Home
“We need stories; stories need places. Places need people, and people need homes.” ~The God of the Garden
I read this quote the other day in Andrew Peterson’s book and stopped short. For the past few weeks, Tim and I have collaborated with several other amazing artists to bring you an online course centered on home, Poetry of Place. It reignited in me a passion for communicating the importance of place, of home.
As I look back over my life, until I met Tim and married him, I had lived in the same home all my life (other than college and Seminary apartments). My parents bought their modest house in Pennsylvania for a whole $35,000. I look back now and can’t imagine a mortgage being that low. My dad was a handy fixer-upper kind of guy so they set to work on it, making it home.
The memories I have at that house are ingrained upon my soul. Behind my house were woods that we roamed freely. There was a patch of the forest where the sun peeked in to coat the ground with a blanket of ferns. It was my favorite spot because as the light danced through the trees, it felt like mystical wooden creatures might appear at any moment.
There was also the creek behind our house that posed both enjoyment mixed with the threat of danger. We’d cautiously cross the slippery rocks with the hope of finding the best pool of crayfish. I still can’t believe my mom let me bring them back in buckets to stink up the yard, but there was nothing quite like catching a monster crayfish to a young heart.
I remember summer nights, lifting the window pane so I could hear the crickets and frogs outside my window. To this day, their night sound is my favorite. In the summer, I’ll often go outside onto our North Carolina porch just to reminisce and be reminded of all the memories their sound evokes.
I am who I am today because of that home I lived in twenty plus years of my life. The stories we lived were held within the four walls of that place. We were four people making home, and it has shaped my life today.
You have stories as well. Stories that have shaped you. And I bet most of those stories transpired within the places you called home. Think a minute of how those places shaped who you are today.
We must never forget the importance of home. Our home is a big part of who we are and who we turn out to be; and it is our most powerful place of ministry.
In Eve in Exile, Rebekah Markle urges,
“Create homes that are utterly compelling. Where the love and the delight and the joy and the gratitude for all God’s blessings are translated into how a table is set . . . how the rooms invite you to come in and enjoy them. Where everything about it preaches a sermon on the goodness of God and the joy He takes in the smallest details . . . His delight in beauty.”
I want this for my daughters. I want them to remember late summer nights playing outside with the sound of frogs and crickets and fireflies dancing about. I want them to come home to tables saturated in the bounty of His beauty, set to serve them. I want our rooms to invite them to linger, grab a book, pour a cup of tea and stay awhile.
I want it to feel like home.
May we never forget that our homes become the stories of our days, our nights, and our everyday journeys. Stories that bring us joy and lead us to reminisce. Stories that feel like home.
There’s still time to join me and several other wonderful artists in this unique online course, Poetry of Place! Come discover how we create family spaces in our home that welcome others in, how we intentionally curate spaces that invite wonder and beauty, what we have learned about the meaning of place as our family has added new chapters to our story, and so much more!
“You will be surprised how much difference it makes to have done something to make a room your home, even for one night. If you are traveling for a length of time, or are in a temporary situation’, it is important to have things which will last. Continuity is important. To have familiar things around us is to feel ‘at home’. ”
~Edith Schaeffer, The Hidden Art of Homemaking
If you are looking for a live art workshop to be a part of this summer, we would love to have you join us in Greenville, NC!
Have you wanted to live a creative life, but have not known where to start? In this live workshop, you will be immersed in delight whether you are an accomplished artist or a total beginner.
Join Daune Pitman, Chris Willard, and Tim Willard for a two-day art workshop where we will explore loose landscapes, mixed media collage book-making, and creative journaling.
We will explore techniques in creating loose landscapes on paper and canvas as well as creative journaling. You will leave the workshop with your own completed loose landscapes and handmade journal, along with a new love of journaling.
There are only a few spots available. We would absolutely love to have you join us as we gather, learn, and dream.
Our hope is that you will leave inspired to step into, grow, and delight in your creativity. Let’s create beauty together!
~Chris xx