Getting A Vision

My office belongings are currently in our front hallway. There are stacks of books and Justin’s bag of basketballs. There’s a rolled-up rug draped on top of the speaker, artwork leaning against the wall and shelves stacked in the corner. My notebooks and mugs of pens and books that I keep close lay neatly in the out-grown cosleeper.

We’ve moved the three older boys into their new room. Their new curtains will be here Thursday and we’ll hang them. I’m slowing pulling out the last of the things that won’t be staying in their new room. I’ve cleared a corner in the new office to assemble the crib one last time. I’ve got the measurements for the standing desk to go in the opposite corner.

I have a vision for both of these rooms. I want spaces that allow our family to flourish and thrive in our home. A space for the boys to grow. A space for Luke to sleep comfortably, undisturbed. A space for me to work in a somewhat organized fashion. (I can’t tell you how much I’ve missed my desk the past few weeks.)

I’ve been daydreaming about the office since we painted it. I know what kind of desk I want. I found a stool for it that will look great in the room. I found a rug. I know where I’m going to hang the macrame plant hanger that my mom made when she was younger than I am now and I know where I’m going to put a huge potted plant when I get it from Lowe’s. I know I want some kind of light fixture and a chair and some white curtains.

I’m going to hang the shelves the perfect distance above my desk and put cork board tiles between the two of them. I’ll have books I want to reference frequently and books that make me happy parked on those shelves. I’ll put some of my favorite artwork on the cork. There will be space for my mugs of pens and the washi tape and even the rose gold scissors I got in a Crafter’s Box.

Eventually after Luke gets a little bigger and moves into the other room, I’ll get up with the sun and pour some coffee and go write. I’ll stand in front of that desk, dig my toes into the rug, and feel the warmth of the morning sunshine streaming in the window.

Is any of that real yet? Nope. But that mental picture is invaluable for helping me not get aggravated at the mess in my hallway right now. I hold it up and it keeps me from getting discouraged. It helps me decide what to keep to go in the office and it helps me decide what to throw away.

I have to have a vision for everything. It’s worth the time for me to sit and consider: what do I want our homeschool to look like? What kind of woman do I want to be in one year? How can our marriage flourish?

That shows me how I want to spend my time. What I need to buy for school. What time I want to get up in the morning. I know I talk frequently about goals and rhythms but really, can there be any purpose behind those things if I don’t have a vision? I don’t think so. If I don’t have a vision, I’m just pulling ideas out of the air. Why not hang that picture there? Why not spend my evenings like that? Why not? Because it won’t get me where I want to go. But I have to know where I want to go before I know if something will get me there.

Why do I read? Because I have a vision for expanding my mind and improving my writing.
Why do I study my Bible? Because I want to know my God and I want to pass along my faith.
Why am I cleaning out the office? Because I have a vision for what it will look like and the work that will be done there.
Why do I persist in reading lessons when I want to throw myself off the porch? Because I have a vision for the boys in the future.

Because there is a vision. It’s not on Pinterest either. It’s in my heart.