An interior journey
Today I’m writing this blog post in the office of my long time friend Veronica. We two have been friends for exactly 20 years give or take a few months. I’m so proud of that milestone I can’t tell you how much. When we met in our late teens (both in school with visions of what life should be dancing through our heads) neither of us could have imagined where we would find ourselves today. Twenty years (gasp) on, I find myself in awe of my friend. She’s so cultured and refined (example: she has a disc set of “How to listen to and appreciate masterworks {of music}” in her car … like casually. I mean C’MON! Classy girl goals.
As I write this, I sit in Veronica’s office waiting for her to finish a business call. She is an interior designer for Ramski & Company an interior architect office. I have always admired the power of design although I have absolutely no innate taste for what should go where in a space or on a website or anywhere else other than on my body (yes I can dress myself - HA!). Just so that no one is confused, Veronica’s job is not about pillow arranging (interior decorator) she is an interior designer, which means she makes indoor spaces functional, safe, and beautiful by determining space requirements and selecting essential and decorative items, such as colors, lighting, and materials.
I never really thought about what this means in terms of where we live and the spaces we occupy until Veronica explained it to me. In order for a space to work whether it be an office space or a living space or a hospital space and be serviceable to the human(s) that occupy it, things have to be arranged just so. Why do we care about lighting (mostly functionality) but also, in my humble, not at all professional opinion because without the proper lighting (natural and artificial) we just don’t feel as productive or even well. Sure we can read by a piercing bald lightbulb swinging from a string but that’s so U.S.S.R. 1971 don’t you think?
Over the years of our friendship, I think both Veronica and I have done a lot of interior designing in our friendship. We have worked hard collectively and by turns (because hey - sometimes one person has to do the heavy lifting when the other can’t) no matter the distance that has separated us. While the space of the friendship remains the same (she is she and I am me) the renovations and updates to keep our interaction growing and nourishing to us both have required an overhaul from time to time based on our changing lives but always toward that central goal.
Our friendship is functional, safe and super beautiful which is essential (because we are so connected) for our individual health and wellbeing.
How do you design your friendships? Give it some thought. Do you have a friendship that could use a renovation perhaps a little interior design? Leave your suggestions for cultivating a functional, safe and beautiful friendship in the comment box below. We could all use your tips and hints!