Home.

Life.

Faulty wiring.

Leaky plumbing.

Cracked foundation.

Jacked up walls.

But let’s go shopping and make it all look pretty…right?

 

Outside fluff vs inside truths.

 

Some days we focus more on the outside, the tangible, the “stuff” than we do on the inside.

I’ve thought about this a lot over the years as I’ve watched my kids grow, friends and family who passed on way to early, and watching my mom battle her own health issues.

Life is unpredictable.

Life can be hard.

Life can throw us curves, twists and turns.

How we respond to the challenges determines the outcome.

How we pivot and make change happen will either help correct the direction or not.

Some choices we make don’t work.

When we realize that, try something else.

 

So what the heck does this have to do with design?

 

Let’s take our bodies.

Most people want to live in a healthy state, right? I know my mom wishes for that.

Our bodies are our temple. The home in which we live. They encompass prized possessions like our hearts, minds and soul. They come with good bones, just like the framing of a well built home.  They have wiring, plumbing, windows, doors. They have a foundation and walls.

For most, the body is designed to be strong. It’s a miracle created by the most perfect architect and designer…God.

Because we live in a sinful world, overtime and with circumstance, our body weakens.

The foundation cracks. The wiring goes bed. The plumbing leaks, especially after having kids…wink wink.

We can tend to ignore these facts and focus on our surrounding, like the physical stuff or popping a pill to make it all better.

We think if we surround ourselves with beautiful things, maybe we’ll feel experience more joy and live a picture perfect life.

The truth lies in us though.

If things aren’t all they could or should be, we need to address the cracked foundation, the incorrect wiring, the leaky pipes.

 

How do you do that?

 

You find a team of experts to help you.

Just like when you plan a remodel or build a new home. If you don’t have the expertise to do it yourself, you hire professionals who specialize in what you need. You find a good contractor, electrician and plumber. You make sure communication is clear and concise. You buy the products you need from quality vendors.

The worst thing you can do is patch problems because that quick fix is temporary.

I look at medicine like duct tape.

Yes, some medicine is necessary and there are special circumstances always. My mother will forever need coumidin for her A-fib, plus a couple other meds. The rest of her 1.5 pages of meds…maybe not so much.

Medicine helps to treat the symptoms. It can cover up the problem without getting to the root cause. What drives me absolutely bonkers is when you ask the doctors, who are considered experts, what she can get off of…they tell you “nothing, she’ll always need these.”

I call B.S.!

What needs to be considered is the true source of the problem.

Just like a home, when you have a water bill that goes crazy you have to find the reason. It could be simple or it could be more complex. For example, there could be a hose that was left on by accident or maybe it’s a cracked pipe under the foundation.

Once the source of the problem is identified, you can fix it.

Fixing the problem within the body might mean a complete overhaul of the mind. A demolition of how we think so we can rewire our brains to be proactive rather than reactive.

I heard recently that anti-depressants are the number one selling drug in the world. I found an article that use of anti-depressants rose by 65% last year. Crazy!

Please don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that people don’t need meds. I’m saying that you need to go deeper to truly understand what is causing the problem.

Duct tape will only hold something together for so long before it loses it’s integrity.

A faulty patch will eventually weaken over time.

If your wiring is outdated and not to code, you have to have a professional bring it up to speed. When that happens the electricity flows better and you eliminate the chance of a fire.

If your plumbing leaks, you have to find the source. You may need to replace the pipes, valves, faucets…with more efficient materials.

If your walls are out of alignment, you might need an engineer to assess the issue. This happened to us in Texas. Our new granite countertop cracked and it was due to our foundation settling in the clay soil. We had to have one side of our house jacked up to help close the cracks and prevent further damage.

While the work done didn’t make our home prettier, it made our foundation stronger which also helped with our peace of mind.

 

My point is…

 

Your body is your first home. It’s your palace designed and hand crafted by the Glorious King!

Treat it with care. Don’t patch up the problems. Find the right people you need to help correct any bad wiring, plumbing and/or foundational cracks.

Be proactive rather than reactive.

If one repair didn’t correct the issue, find a new expert. Maybe you have to go in a different direction if the first solution doesn’t work.

It may be hard, messy and challenging, but as my dear friend Robin Sharma says…

 

All change is hard at first, messy in the middle and so gorgeous at the end.Click To Tweet

 

Just like a remodel, renovation or new home build…

• Start with process with an open mind.
• Assess what needs to be done.
• Create a plan.
• Get your team in place.

Change can be both exhilarating and hard at the same time. When you think you can’t go on or that you might have made a mistake, stay the course and persevere because the end result will be beautiful

Renovations can be hard but are so worth it!

I’ll never forget the day my mom called me to tell me she made a mistake.

My mom sold the home I helped her design to find a smaller one closer to my sister when she was diagnosed with cancer. They found a little ranch home that was in need of a whole lotta love. The wiring was a fire hazard. The bathrooms and kitchen needed to be gutted and walls had to be moved.

 

 

 

 

My mom had contractors start work before we had a final plan in place. When the contractors gutted the kitchen, she panicked. She called me and said, “Lisa, I think I made a mistake in buying this home. I think I’m going to sell it.” I told her that she couldn’t resell a house without a kitchen and then asked her, “Do you trust me?”

My mom said, “yes”.

I told her that we’d get a plan in place and when all was complete, she wouldn’t regret the purchase.

 

 

 

It was messy, hard and mistakes were made during the process. Surprises popped up which are always common in a renovation. In the end, we accomplished our goal and today she has a home that she loves.

 

I write this for my mom and for all who read this…

 

 

Be brave.

Don’t be afraid to do the hard stuff.

You are worth the time and effort it takes to live in a body with a strong foundation, mind and energizing spirit.

Don’t let others tell you what is possible or what is real.

Don’t rely on a quick fix or temporary patch.

You get to decide how you want to design your life, your reality, your world.

It starts with a decision.

It starts within your home…and that home is you.

If you need a bit of hope and truth about overcoming depression and challenges, watch this from Ben Courson – How To Overcome Depression.

His message really touched my heart and I felt compelled to share it with you.

 

 

 

With love and blessings,