You love adventuring, you really do. But after days of touring several different countries and seeing so many sights, what you really want is a long bubble bath in your own tub, a glass of wine in hand, jazz playing softly in the background. You want to sit out on your patio and linger over your morning coffee. You want to sleep in your own bed again.
As you slide the key into the lock of your front door, you feel like Bilbo Baggins--there and back again--and ready to write about your adventures. But first, you want to feel your home around you once more. You breathe a sigh of relief as you close the door behind you and take in your familiar surroundings. Everything is just as you left it--the turquoise blanket you are knitting in a heap on your cranberry couch, your writing desk covered in books and painting supplies. The kitchen, spotless.
It is the garden you go to first; you want to see how your plants fared while you were away. Did the cabbage worms eat all your lettuces? Did the pea shoots get enough water? Is your cucumber plant surviving? Your plants appear none the worse for the wear, though you fuss over them all the same, trimming back dried leaves and watering them.
Then you fill your home with light, pulling back curtains and opening the windows for fresh air. There is life here again! You go to your bedroom and stare longingly at your big colorful bed, the covers of which you can't wait to snuggle under that night. It will be nice to dream in your own space again. Then your take in the kitchen, looking fairly forlorn without a full fridge or something cooking on the stove. It looks almost as if dust has gathered there after two weeks without use. You make plans to remedy that quickly--grocery shopping must happen; new recipes must be tried.
You unpack slowly, pulling out each simple treat you've gathered from your travels and taking time to decide where they belong in your home. The ribbons bought in London must go on the vanity table, the tea, in the pantry. Later, you will hang your paintings of Paris--done by a street artist, bought along the Seine--in your living room. And you will place your magnets on your fridge alongside the others, some from past travels, some bought in a fit of pure whimsy.
As you go through this ritual of returning home, you feel your things; your creature comforts begin to wake up, your house stirring as if from a long sleep. It is pure pleasure to be back. The only thing left to be done now is that long bath. You have journeyed far to restore yourself, and you find that restoration, at last, in rekindling your routine.
Enchantment Learning & Living is an inspirational blog celebrating life’s simple pleasures, everyday mysticism, and delectable recipes that are guaranteed to stir the kitchen witch in you. If you enjoyed what you just read and believe that true magic is in the everyday, subscribe to my newsletter below for regular doses of enchantment. Want even more inspiration? Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Here’s to a magical life!