Have you ever looked at your dining room table as more than a piece of furniture? Or do you ever see your car as a trustworthy, or not so trustworthy friend? What about the sugar container?...now there's a real friend!
When I look at the things around me, in my house specifically, I don't see just pieces of furniture, dishes, appliances….they have character, personalities….when I go to someone else's house and see the same things, they don't mean as much to me because I don't use them, handle them, clean them, or wonder where they came from.
A while ago, my dad sold his old truck and got a new one. At first, the new truck was like a stranger, an intruder. It wasn't familiar and comfortable. There were no memories attached to it. But, five months later, that new truck has become familiar and has made memories of its own.
Another example would be my horses. Bannie and Smoke are my friends, more like people than horses. When I see someone else's horses, I don't see anything more than an animal. I don't know that horse's personality, likes or dislikes.
Every once in a while, its fun to look around me at each object I am surrounded by and evaluate how familiar I am with that object. Do I regard it as a friend or not?
I know this may sound a little strange, but I think it's the writer in me that does this. I can use everything around me in a story, therefore I tend to see things differently than other people. In order to use something in a story, I need to be familiar with it. I like to look at old pieces of furniture and wonder, if this piece could talk, what stories could it tell? Would they be good or bad? Dull or exciting? You can ask the same question of new furniture too. What would it be like to travel down an assembly line? What kinds of people put it together? Exactly what places has it been in its journey from the factory to your house?
Okay, okay, maybe I'm the only one that does this, but I enjoy it!
When I look at the things around me, in my house specifically, I don't see just pieces of furniture, dishes, appliances….they have character, personalities….when I go to someone else's house and see the same things, they don't mean as much to me because I don't use them, handle them, clean them, or wonder where they came from.
A while ago, my dad sold his old truck and got a new one. At first, the new truck was like a stranger, an intruder. It wasn't familiar and comfortable. There were no memories attached to it. But, five months later, that new truck has become familiar and has made memories of its own.
Another example would be my horses. Bannie and Smoke are my friends, more like people than horses. When I see someone else's horses, I don't see anything more than an animal. I don't know that horse's personality, likes or dislikes.
Every once in a while, its fun to look around me at each object I am surrounded by and evaluate how familiar I am with that object. Do I regard it as a friend or not?
I know this may sound a little strange, but I think it's the writer in me that does this. I can use everything around me in a story, therefore I tend to see things differently than other people. In order to use something in a story, I need to be familiar with it. I like to look at old pieces of furniture and wonder, if this piece could talk, what stories could it tell? Would they be good or bad? Dull or exciting? You can ask the same question of new furniture too. What would it be like to travel down an assembly line? What kinds of people put it together? Exactly what places has it been in its journey from the factory to your house?
Okay, okay, maybe I'm the only one that does this, but I enjoy it!
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