Mind, Body, Home: Transform Your Life One Room at a Time (32 page)

times, you may be drawn to the front yard and other times to the back

yard.

Also consider the condition of the yard when you buy a house. It

may be indicative of what you need to work on in order to balance your

public and private sides. Think back to your past homes. What was the

condition of the yards before and after you lived there? Did you make

improvements or simply maintain the existing yard? Think about how

this may have correlated with what you were experiencing at that time

in your life with regard to your public life.

In my recent home, it was the backyard that was in complete dis-

array upon purchasing the home, while the front yard and landscap-

ing looked beautiful. In the backyard, there was little grass and a lot of construction trash, weeds, and overgrown areas. After about two years,

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the backyard looks fabulous with a vegetable garden, hammock, and

zen garden. A new sidewalk was put in joining the front and backyard

with a beautiful doorway that connected the two as well. There is now

a sense of completion that I can feel with the home and within myself

in terms of stepping into my own authenticity.

Front Porch

There is nothing more inviting than a large front porch furnished with

rocking chairs and a swing. It is a style quintessential to bungalows and craftsmen homes. Unfortunately, the front porch has become a lost

architectural feature, although the style is being replicated in many

planned neighborhoods. A front porch represents your social self or fa-

çade. It’s how you portray yourself to others. If you have a front porch, think about what it says about you. What kind of seating is there? A single chair for reading? Or are you more sociable, welcoming friends and

neighbors stopping by with comfy seating and a coffee table setting? Or is your front porch empty, showing little of your personality? Consider how you want to be perceived socially and make changes to your front

porch accordingly if there is a mismatch.

Occasionally, the front porch is in need of repair. In the case of a

concrete front porch, it could experience cracks or crackling paint.

Front porches built of wood are occasionally in need of repair to the floorboards. In these cases, consider if there has been a sense of social withdrawal. Have you been fending off social interactions and engage-ments for some reason? If so, consider why and if it is still serving you in some way. Upon repairing the porch, you will experience a return to

normal social involvement.

Mind Body Home Connection:
Front Porch

• Are you happy with your level of social interactions?

• Do you desire more social time?

• Are there people you are avoiding?

• What face are you putting forward?

• Are you being seen or portrayed in an accurate light?

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Patio/Deck

A patio or deck extends the house into the back yard creating more out-

door living space. In creating more physical space, it also creates more mental space for the occupants. Have you ever seen the back of a home

with no patio or deck? The house just stops abruptly. There is no transition and the energy stops abruptly as if something is missing. A patio or deck extends the energy of the home giving its occupants more space

in which to open into, express themselves, and explore new aspects of

themselves.

In feng shui, patios and decks are considered extensions of the

Bagua Map and thus provide bonus areas in which to expand. For ex-

ample, if you have a patio off the back right of your home, it would be considered an extension of your Love Corner and off the back left of

your home would be an extension of your Wealth Corner. Whereas, a

deck or patio centered off the back of the home would give the Fame & Reputation section a boost for the occupants.

If you have a deck or patio extending from your home, notice where

it is in relation to the Bagua Map. It could also take up multiple sections, if not the entire back of the home. Take advantage of this extra energy by using these outdoor spaces. Avoid letting these areas go ignored or in need of repair. Otherwise, it will deplete the energy from the correlating sections of the Bagua Map. Keep plants healthy. Add outdoor light-

ing or other accents to give the area a boost of energy.

Mind Body Home Connection:
Patio/Deck

• Are you taking advantage of available opportunities?

• Are you ignoring opportunities or squandering them away?

• Do you need a boost of energy or another outlet to utilize your

energy?

• What talent or skill are you underutilizing?

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Balcony

A balcony is often associated with romance, chivalry, and royalty. It is the damsel in distress pleading from the balcony to be saved or Romeo

beckoning Juliet to come down from the balcony. In matters of pomp

and circumstance, politicians and even the Pope speak from a balcony.

Inherent to a balcony is that it is high above the ground, automatically putting the person on the balcony in a higher position than those on the ground. In terms of our living spaces, a balcony represents what is special about us—our traits, talents, and skills that set us apart from others.

If you have a balcony, be sure to take advantage of this space and

make it yours. Do not let the space go unused or ignored as this repre-

sents a skill or talent that you are not utilizing. You will often see this with homes with multiple outdoor spaces that include a balcony, perhaps off a bedroom. While the homeowners may have had plans for it

or even loved it initially, it ends up never getting used. In loft or condo spaces the balcony may be the only outdoor space available, in which

case it is used frequently. Either way, be aware of this space and maxi-mize its potential.

Mind Body Home Connection:
Balcony

• Are you utilizing your special skills and talents?

• What aspects of yourself are you underutilizing?

• Do you need to lift yourself up or boost your confidence?

• Are you waiting for someone to show up and save you?

Fence

Fences are common in urban areas where homes are situated in close

proximity to one another. A fence is a boundary that literally and figuratively draws a line in the sand. Likewise, a fence represents setting a boundary in our own life. Creating healthy boundaries can be challenging for many people. It is usually in the context of family and friends, although sometimes so is the case with nosy neighbors. A fence is a literal
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boundary between you and your immediate neighbor or property line,

but it can also represent boundaries on a larger scale as well.

Have you ever had to replace part of a fence? Maybe a fence that

collapsed due to degradation or a fallen tree. Or maybe you installed

a fence in the ground for the first time. If you have experienced any

of these, then most likely you were also setting, creating, or clarifying boundaries in some relationship in your life during that time. Repairing a fence can help mend relationships by resetting appropriate boundaries.

Are you feeling “on the fence” about a particular situation in your

life? This could be an alternative meaning in the event of a fence suddenly falling on your property. When we are on the fence about some-

thing in our life, we feel stuck and unable to commit to one thing or

the other. Sometimes we need to be nudged in one direction or the

other. This could manifest into an unexpected collapse of a fence from

a storm, tree, or other unordinary, or even unexplainable, event.

Mind Body Home Connection:
Fence

• Where do you need to set boundaries in your life?

• Is there a particular relationship that has crossed a boundary?

• Are you feeling “on the fence” about a certain situation?

• Do you need to draw a line in the sand with someone?

• Do you need to make an important decision?

Gardens

Garden spaces come in many forms—from vegetable gardens to flower

gardens to simple shrubs. Regardless of their shape, size, and contents, they symbolize abundance and prosperity. Homes with luscious landscapes give the appearance of abundance despite the size or location of the home. The same is true for cities that are blessed with weather conducive to growing flowers and fruit year-round. There is an abundance

about the city, usually commensurate with the cost of living as well.

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Even homes without a yard can have beautiful container gardens

on a porch or balcony. In fact, it is especially important for living spaces without a yard to have some semblance of a garden space if possible in

order to connect with nature and its abundant properties. While there

is an entire subcategory within feng shui pertaining to gardens, the

number one
rule is to grow plants and flowers that are native to your region. The most important aspect to any garden is that it be healthy and alive. An abundant garden takes just the right balance of sun, water,

and minerals.

Just as important as having healthy plants is keeping your garden

weeded. There are many clichés about weeding your garden with re-

gard to keeping relationships maintained and healthy. This has become

part of our collective consciousness to the point of literally manifesting.

The next time you weed your garden consider what part of your life

needs weeding as well. Is it a particular relationship or is it an aspect of yourself that you have been neglecting? Once you have weeded the

garden, consider whether it is time to plant something new or whether

the empty space feels better.

Mind Body Home Connection:
Gardens

• Are you feeling abundant and prosperous?

• Are you taking care of yourself and tending to your own garden?

• What weeds do you need to pull in your life?

• Do you need to nurture yourself to facilitate your own growth?

• Are you feeling “dead” or stagnant?

Driveway

The driveway of a house is made specifically for the car and therefore symbolically relates more to our car than our home. That being said,

the driveway is that connection point or transitional space between our home and the rest of the world via our car. Our car symbolizes how we

go through life. Most everyone at some time has had a dream of driving

a car. Maybe in your dream the road was icy. Maybe you were swerving

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or driving out of control. Or maybe your car was stolen. These dreams

indicate how in control of our life we are feeling at the time. Our car can also represent our ambition in life and perhaps even our status in

the world, depending on how much we value our car.

The driveway is an inherent pathway and thus represents our own

path as we leave the safety of our home and go into the unpredictable

and unknown world. Through our driveway we leave our comfort

zone. It is a transition space between the known and the unknown. The

larger the property, the longer the driveway will most likely be, thereby creating a larger buffer for transitioning. If you live in an urban area, then you may not have a driveway at all. The transition may be the sidewalk that leads you to the street where your car is parked. This sudden transition may be too jarring for some people.

Driveways are usually permanent fixtures and often go ignored.

Depending on the surface, they usually need periodic sealing to avoid

cracking. In the case of a rock driveway, new rock may need to be

added as it weathers. Otherwise, little maintenance is required. How-

ever, upgrading or improving a driveway can give the homeowners a

smoother path in life. Also consider what activities take place in the

driveway. It is a place where random accidents sometimes happen, such

as running over a personal belonging. Obstacles in the driveway repre-

sent obstacles in your life. Consider whether such an obstacle occurs

when leaving your home or when coming home. The timing will indi-

cate whether it represents an obstacle within your household or in the

workplace.

Mind Body Home Connection:
Driveway

• Are you having difficulty knowing your path in life?

• Do you feel like you are driving on smooth pavement or a gravel

road?

• What is getting in the way of your ambitions and goals?

• Do you feel like obstacles are getting in your way?

• What keeps getting in your way?

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Swimming Pool

Swimming pools are an outdoor element that can either add or detract

from the energy of the home. Not coincidentally, a pool can also dra-

matically increase or decrease the value of a home depending on the

circumstances. By their very nature, swimming pools are containers of

water used for the purpose of recreation and relaxing. When used and

taken care of, a swimming pool is a beneficial energy that adds to the

household in a way that is hard to replicate.

If the pool is not taken care of, unused, or neglected, then it can be

a huge energy drain, literally and figuratively. If you have a swimming pool in such a condition, then consider in what area of your life you

are feeling drained. Where are you underutilizing your energy? Is there anything more depressing than seeing a swimming pool without water?