Why friends bring our homes to life

Last night Judy and I had some dear long-standing friends (I have stopped using the term “Old Friends”) over for dinner together with friends of theirs.

It got me thinking about why we work so hard to make our homes that special place we like to return to. Firstly it must be to give us a sense of achievement and almost a right to enjoy it - the bigger the effort the greater the enjoyment!! So the first objective is self-satisfaction.

I then asked the question, why do we so enjoy having friends around? It may be to elicit their approval but I think more importantly it is to share and enjoy the friendship. As we walked around the garden there were opportunities to share notes on different plants and to dig up a few and give them away. This act of sharing one’s plants allows us to bring our garden to life. As we walk around it we remember the people who have given us plants and the stories that surround them.

As one gets a little older one seems to enjoy everything that is familiar. Our homes, our friends, our animals and familiar places to visit. We tend to avoid the new - maybe because they challenge us. As we sat down to dinner we discovered that our “New” friends introduced us to new ideas, shared similar passions and added so much to the enjoyment of the evening.

Maybe the message is, that we should use the confidence we get from the familiarity of our homes to explore the new. So much is changing in our world and many of the changes allow us the explore and find new passions and enjoyment. Our new friends opened new doors for us - the “old” ones made us feel good!!

I would love to hear how you are adapting to change and how you share your home with friends … and strangers! Please contact me on

or 082-653-5643.