I’ve never had any furniture in my great room, other than a rocking chair in the corner, and the Christmas tree when in season (it’s artificial, so I suppose it can be counted in the furniture category). The chair matches the woodwork pretty well, but that is just by coincidence. It’s left over from when my kids were babies; I never could bring myself to give it up after they outgrew the need for a nursery rocking chair.
 

The window shown in this photo is part of a set of lovely tall windows along the back of the house, facing south-southeast. I didn’t want to put any furniture on that wall and block the gorgeous morning light. On the side of the room opposite the fireplace, there is a partial wall dividing the great room from the kitchen; it’s too short to put any sizable furniture along it. The only other wall is the one across from the windows, and we always walk close to that wall when going to and from the kitchen, so putting any furniture there would seriously disrupt our usual traffic pattern.

The room always felt perfectly comfortable without furniture. On winter nights, we sat on the floor playing Monopoly next to the cheerful lights of the Christmas tree. In the summer, when we had cookouts, there was plenty of space for guests to walk around. Projects could easily be spread out on the floor and assembled. But in the back of my mind, I felt guilty for having failed at decorating because I didn’t have a properly furnished house like my mom always had.

This year, I’ve put a higher priority on self-nurturing, along with reading some blogs and books about minimalism. And I have decided to give myself permission to keep my house a comfortable place for my family, even if it might not look like a decorator’s showplace. What really matters is how we feel when we’re at home!

Nurturing Thursday was started by Becca Givens and seeks to “give this planet a much needed shot of fun, support and positive energy.” Visit her site to find more Nurturing Thursday posts and a list of frequent contributors.