The Hall Upstairs

Our lives are made up of bits and pieces aren't they? Things we've done, memories we've captured, stops and starts, all put together to make the composition of our life and what we are right now. Which isn't to say we might not change tomorrow or in the next moment. We will add another memory, big or small...perhaps monumental, or maybe just a whispered thought.

Our hall upstairs seems to have become a place where memories are stored. We pass by them everyday. The scene changes when the mood strikes or a memory is added. At the end of the hall I have a Biedermeier secretary that has been in my family for a very long time. Inside are old picture frames, and new. There are pictures of my Mom and Dad, my daughters when they were little, my in laws and grandparents. There are shells from beaches we have visited, and folk art from New Mexico, where my mother once lived. There are fortune cookie fortunes taped to the window glass and stuck into the frame from our many trips to our favorite Thai food restaurant and China Town in San Francisco....just the good fortunes though. There is a post card from a trip to Bodega Bay showing a scene from the Hitchcock film, "The Birds", which had been filmed there.

On top I have put one of my favorite Ironstone footed bowls, a branch I found in the street in front of our house, and a pair of exercise pins from the antique shop that Mom had once upon a time. The mirror I found at a garage sale, the faded mercury reflecting one of the star pendant lights I put up when we moved here.

I have an American Indian Rug that came from New Mexico on the Fir Plank floors. I think the floors are beautiful, being so different from the quartersawn oak floors on the first floor. The story as to why they used fir on the second floor I am sure is a good one. Often it was to save money by putting less expensive materials in the private areas of the home, but I wish I knew exactly why.

I put a faux bois table here. I love the color and the texture of the concrete with the wood of the floors and the white painted walls. The mirror on the wall above this table came from another life in Southern California when a new bride was trying to furnish a tiny house in Newport Beach. I have hung a little tramp art frame on top of the larger mirror. It frames your face when you walk by.

Life happens every minute. Before I took the picture, my daughter left a perfume bottle on the table before I noticed. But I like that it's there.

Every time I walk through this hall, I am reminded of things that make me smile. I hope you all have wonderful memories to be thankful for this coming holiday. I am thankful for you all and your sweet support for my little blog.

I wish you all the Happiest of Thanksgivings!

Have a wonderful weekend!