I always find it interesting walking into someone’s house for the first time. Especially if its someone I’ve know for awhile such as a coworker. A quick glance around someone’s home can provide more information about a person than hours of conversation.
Most of us are not in the fortunate position of being able to build a home. Even fewer of us can actually build our dream home. So what we are left with is often a compromise of what we want and what we can afford.
But its how people occupy their homes that fascinates me. How each of us chooses to fill up the space. How a couple or a family manages to balance everyone’s spirit in the same space.
We have all been in homes that made us uncomfortable even when the people who lived there did not. Sometimes you get the feeling that noone actually lives there. There is no dust, no scuff marks in the carpet, not a single glass out of place in the kitchen. The whole place seems like a demo house that a realtor shows before you agree to buy a plot in the subdivision. Or perhaps its the opposite case, the dirt on the floor is so thick you are looking for a tiller rather than a vacuum. Dishes piled high and laundry randomly forming its own communities in the corners.
In both of those cases, the residents of that home have created a space that suits their spirit. Perhaps the person is extremely focused and in pursuit of their particular obsession they have abandoned mundane domestic chores. Maybe they are meticulous in nature and cannot relax until everything is in its place. But in both cases the person is expressing their true selves in their physical space.
Cleanliness is only one thing to look at though. What kinds of things does someone place in prominent view? Are there books? Movies? An enormous CD collection? All of these things are a quick guide to people’s interests and passions and can tell you volumes about the person or people who live somewhere.
So what does it all mean? Can you assess someone simply by looking at their living room? Not quite, but it is a good place to start if you want to learn more about someone.
Tonight, when you are eating dinner or getting ready for bed. Look around. You may even learn something about your own priorities by listening to what your house is saying.
