A friend and I were talking today about dream homes, emphasis on dream. I think I was twelve or thirteen when I started imagining mine: a grey stone mansion in countryside not far from the sea, facing woods threaded by a river that passed nearby. There’d be vast rooms inside for all my friends to stay as long as they needed or wanted, months at a time, and in their absence the rooms would be kept up for them with their favourite comforts and joys. There would be rooms, too, for me and my whims: a Night room, full of art depicting night scenes, & with a domed skylight only unveiled at night; a Scarf room, decorated with all the scarves I’ve found or been given or gifted over the years; a room full of armour and bladed weapons. There would be, of course, a vast library, a beautifully functional kitchen, a room with a fireplace, a swimming pool.

One grows, one’s tastes change — the armour and weapons were very important to me at 12, but I might prefer to replace them with a solarium now, and a home gym — one accommodates oneself to different realities. The thought of a sunny room full of clean surfaces with a cup of tea to hand now brings me the same joy that thinking on that house used to. But let’s keep dreaming, friends; what are the features of your dream homes, past and present? Their architecture, their scents, their colours, their contents? Where would they be in the world, besides your hearts?

Wishing you health, hearths & happiness this weekend!

Love,

Amal