“Sanctuary… is a word which here means a small, safe place in a troubling world. Like an oasis in a vast desert or an island in a stormy sea.”
—Lemony Snicket
My family knows that I’ve always wanted to live in a renovated old church house. I think it’s because I love the idea of my home being a literal sanctuary. (Anybody else remember in your old world history lessons learning about how one could enter a church and claim sanctuary? Back in the day if you did this you were safe…safe from the world…no matter what…and nothing or nobody could hurt you as long as you were inside…)
It wasn’t in the far distant past that it finally dawned on me that my home can be the sanctuary I’ve always wanted…apart from the world…where my kids are safe no matter what…a place of peace, and love and worship…a sanctuary…even if it’s physical location is in my cookie cutter suburban home and not a renovated church.
Recently I was reading an article about the “soulcraft of creating and sustaining safe havens”. The point that the author was trying to make was that we should be turning our homes into havens to shelter ourselves and our families from the hectic world we live in—in other words, creating my idea of sanctuary.
I think that all of our ideas of what a sanctuary looks like is probably different. But I think that we could all agree that we want our home to be a safe place from the world where all who live there feel loved and wanted.
The older my kids get the more important I believe a sanctuary is and the harder my husband and I try to create one. It’s not always easy…life happens, needs change, money is tight, problems arise…but (and I am going to end this post where I started…with Lemony Snicket) hopefully we can be the
“sort of people who know that there’s always something. Something to invent, something to read, something to bite, and something to do, to make a sanctuary, no matter how small.”
Here’s to creating sanctuaries.
-liZ
***Note: I’m still working this week on Facet 4 in “The Art of Homemaking” .
I want to concentrate one more week on the “Do it. Do it right. Do it right now.” idea becoming a habit instead of just a great quote. I know that this will take longer than a week to sink in but I just want one more week to focus on it.
Thank you to everyone who left comments telling me about their positive homemaking habits—you ladies are awesome…and if you have anymore I’d love hearing about them. And as for next week we’ll be moving on in the chapter to a section called “Let each room fulfill it’s function” so be prepared.
I like the idea of making a home a sanctuary!
This is such a lovely idea. I don’t think you’ve done this (I can’t find it), but I think it would be great if you created a tab or something where we can find all of your posts on the Art of Homemaking. I know I would love to go back to see each step and how you did it.
This is such a good reminder of the purpose of our homes! They are way more than a place to sleep and eat, but a place to help restore your soul, for us that’s in Christ, too, but still creating that safe haven is so important and what the whole family needs! Thanks! What are some practical ways you do that in your home?
I love this post. I think this is where my head is at right now. Where I want my energy and time spent too!
I remember playing those games as a child. I do, no matter how long ago it was. When I was reading your post I was smiling and at the same time my heart was telling me this has changed drastically for children today. Do they really feel safe in their homes? Or even at school for that matter? I wish more people could read your positive message. More parents would take the time to provide the safe havens for their children. I wish it was more like the 50’s when there was a sense of community in our communities. How do we get that back? Today when you smile at someone, even in your own neighborhood, their most common reaction is to just look away. Pretend it wasn’t them you were smiling at… Why? Why is it so hard to fathom that someone would be so friendly to look you in the eye and smile at you? Yes…you are definitely right home is where it all begins for us really. It is our safe haven, it is where we go to for love and it nourishes the soul. Thank you for your post… It stirred up some feelings in me. Happy and sad, I enjoyed it.