Saturday, August 9, 2014

My Happiest Place


I like traveling, visiting other places, other countries, other areas of this country, even other parts of the state I live in.  I’m lucky that North Carolina has a very wide diversity of landscapes from the coastal areas, including the amazing Outer Banks, to the Blue Ridge mountains on the west, and several decently sized metro areas in the central Piedmont area, all within a few hours’ drive.  For much of my life, my travel opportunities were limited, but I’m fortunate that getting older has brought with it more chances to see other places and try new things.

I’m comfortable in my home as well, but one particular area stands out because it’s the site of more travels in my mind than my body can ever accomplish in this lifetime. The recliner in the corner of my office has been the site of many of the best experiences of my life.

Emily Dickinson wrote: “There is no frigate like a book, to take us lands away.” (http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/182908)  in just a few short lines, she sums up one of the wonderful and amazing truths of human experience. We have the capacity to reach any place on earth and even beyond through the use of our imagination.  We can meet people who passed away long ago and walk beside brothers and sisters who live on the other side of the globe. We can even travel through places that don’t (as far as we know) even exist.  All through diving into a good book.

For most of my life reading has been my favorite hobby and ultimate way to relax. It’s taken me many strange places, given me chills, thrills and delighted shivers, and satisfied my craving for experiences beyond the everyday grind of life.

Now that I’m an author as well, the recliner does double duty as both reading chair and place for meditating on and developing the story in progress. That's pretty amazing duty for an object of wood and cloth!

4 comments:

  1. I have a red recliner couch where I write on my laptop as well as read. Sitting there right now. :)

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  2. We All seem to have a special place like this. My recliner is brown. While I can't write on it--too deadly. I fall asleep-- I can dream on it. I get some great inspiration that way

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  3. I long for the day when I'm settled enough to have a comfy chair in a comfy corner... Like the song goes, "In my own little corner in my own little chair, I can be whatever I want to be..." - CINDERELLA, Rogers and Hammerstein. :) You give me something to work on!

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  4. Nice post, Karen - comfy as your favorite chair. I can't honestly say there's one place that is my happy place. I read all over the house, on the back porch when it's a nice day. I write mostly at my computer. It's on the second floor, so when I look out, I'm looking into the trees and, when the weather lets me open the windows, I'm listening to birdsong.

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