Do you remember that old television prompt: “It’s 10 p.m. Do you know where your children are?” It was a public service announcement before we even ever heard of public service announcements. It was a way of reminding parents that it was late and their children should be home. I have been thinking about this lately, how home is a place of security and family and warmth. But I wonder if we are traveling away from that with our current homes.
There is a reason that there is something magical about a seeing the warm glow of lights through a window. Think of the success of Thomas Kincaid paintings, which appear on everything from calendars to household knick-knacks. Or, consider how everyone loves to have a little lit Christmas village to display. The creators of those popular Department 56 villages came up with the idea while they were parked at the top of a hill overlooking a town below.
There is a reason that peeking in someone’s lit windows at night, especially when it is your own window and you are arriving back after a day spent away, can give you a feeling of warmth and nostalgia. You can just picture a soft, safe environment, filled with good smells, good people and good comfort.
Growing up in the city, I used to look out of the window at the courtyard of my apartment building. There were dozens of lit windows, with dozens of people cooking dinner, doing homework, watching TV. It was life being lived.
Flash forward to today, when I still sometimes get that sense driving through my neighborhood, walking down my long driveway. There is one home, for example, at the beginning of our road. It is a converted grist mill that sits by a pond. At night, each of its windows is aglow with electric candlelight.
But I also get a another sense, as huge houses, carefully planned and landscaped, are being added to the mix. These houses are often dark inside (making me wonder where the occupants are), with their lighting focused on the outside of the homes, highlighting architectural details, the sculpted bushes and the brick or stone work. The outside lights are also acting as deterrents to potential burglars, for a different type, a different sense, of security.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
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