The Life of an Object

We are in the midst of redecorating the dining room. It has been over a year since I really thought about our home. I stopped decorating because we were wedding planning and saving money for our ceremony and honeymoon. Now here we are, ready to begin again. I usually don’t fall asleep right away at night; I have myriad thoughts that fly in and out of my mind. Last night, I thought about salt shakers.

Pinterest cover image

We love to host but don’t know a great many people to invite. It doesn’t stop us from dreaming of swanky dinner parties with people in their best shining costumes. The table laid with bouquets of flowers. Funky serving dishes. Vintage knife rests. Mismatched hand blown goblets. And the guests are using all of these specially curated home finds. They are using the salt shakers and using the good dishes. Being in our home and feeling taking care of. That’s what decorating and having company over is all about, isn’t it?

And while I laid there pondering the life of an object and the meaning it holds for its owner, I had a memory. Perhaps the first time I felt someone’s love for an object and the impact it had on me.

I was 23 years old and had gone out for a night of over indulgence with a new friend. We shared a mutual friend and decided to get to know each other better. We had recently graduated from college and for whatever reason wound up at Frat Row, dancing with slightly younger boys and drinking terrible cheap beer. The night led us to more shenanigans and ended with me very very ill. She took me home and tucked me in and before falling asleep she brought me a glass of water.

Not just any glass of water, a copper hammered cup just like the ones at our favorite Indian restaurant. It thrilled her to own these cups. I remember the excitement she had, “have some water from the Taj cup! It makes the water cold and taste so good.” Her excitement for her object made me feel taken care of. We became roommates shortly after.

That’s the life of our objects. We love them because we assign some kind of meaning to them. We remember where we bought it, who with, what trip, etc. And their meaningfulness to us transcends to others and they in turn feel meaningful, too. I hope that’s how our guests feel when they sit at our table.