Jerry used to say if he were gone
from the house more than two hours, when he came back the furniture would be
rearranged.
With time, my desire to shove
furniture around has declined, but even with back issues, I can still use a little
hip action to get big pieces in new spots.
It’s not just about making things
look fresh. I love sitting on a just moved sofa and seeing what the world looks
like from that new place. If I put the
lamp on a different table, how will the light spill into the room? What if I
moved my desk under the north window, what would I see when I looked up from writing?
Sometimes when writers pen short
stories, they do their own furniture rearranging by writing several versions—one from the perspective of every person in the tale. It helps
to know what each person is seeing.
As we relate to others, it can be
helpful to take a seat in their chair—to see the world
from their point of view—especially when we’re at odds with them.
As you can
see in the picture below, Lucy often likes to see things from the human perspective.
< sigh > And I don’t even know what to say about the cats.
The apostle
Peter once wrote, “Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love
one another, be compassionate and humble” (I Peter 3:8).
It can sometimes
be challenging to exercise sympathy and compassion especially when someone behaves in
a way that’s hard to understand, or does something that offends us. But taking the
time to understand why can make all the difference in our relationship. Use a
writer’s tip and try drafting the story from their perspective.
It can only
help.
Beverly Varnado is the author of several small town romances from Anaiah Press including her latest, A Season for Everything. All are available at Amazon. A memoir, Faith in the Fashion District, from Crosslink Publishing is also available as well as her other books, Give My Love to the Chestnut Trees and Home to Currahee. She also has an Etsy Shop, Beverly Varnado Art.
To explore the web version of One Ringing Bell, please visit bev-oneringingbell.blogspot.com
Beverly Varnado copyright 2022