This Little Light

We've been living in our apartment for just over a year now, and I tell people that it definitely gives apartments a good name.

I feel like when I see advertisements on social media for apartments for rent, they are always these dark, tiny caves with carpet from the 60s and those pressboard kitchen cabinets that have no hardware. We do not live in that apartment. Ours is big and beautiful and (in some ways) more modern than anything we have ever lived in in our combined lives. I've also noticed, when looking at apartment posts on Pinterest, that most apartment-dwellers have to combat the woes of an all-white apartment that they aren't allowed to paint.

Again...not so for us! Ours came already decked out in beautiful colors that make it so soft and homey. 

Mostly. ;) 

When Rob and his family lived here right before us, his children were given the option of choosing their own bedroom colors. By the way, I think it's great that they did. They all made a lot of sacrifices as a family to live in an apartment while Rob worked two jobs, so picking out their own bedroom colors was a great gift to give them.

The girls picked a color called Paris, and depending on the time of day and the way the sun hits the walls, it looks a little pink or a little purple. It worked splendidly with our Anne of Green Gables guest room decor, though I do feel a little bad for Jeremiah every time he spends the night and I move him into the Anne of Green Gables room.

The bedroom that became our office is yellow. It worked perfectly because that was the color of our office in our old house! But our old house was yellow and this is y.e.l.l.l.l.l.l.l.l.l.l.o.w.w.w.w.w.w.w.w. Sunglasses are sometimes needed in this room. 

To be honest, I haven't spent much time in our little office in the last year. Part of it is that the room is overcrowded (you remember the post about how I have too many books!) and chaotic. Part of it is that our desk is tiny and Ryan's been using it quite a bit for estate stuff. (And I'm so glad it's been a good place for him to work on that!) Part of it is the surface-of-the-sun yellow walls staring at me. And of course, part of it is lack of time.

Last night I told Ryan I wanted to try doing my quiet time in the office to see if it would help me focus a bit better. I often study while he's watching TV, and while I'm usually pretty good at tuning out the TV, if he's watching a crime drama, it's a little awkward to combine with the Word, right?

I took one step inside the office and there were those walls. It was too late in the day to use natural light from the window, and I knew turning on the overhead light would make me head straight for the sunglasses. It's also true that I absolutely hate overhead lights. 

So....I walked across the hall to the guest bath, unplugged the little lamp that sits on the sink, and carried it over to the desk and plugged it in.

It's just a little light, but it made the perfect AMOUNT of light in the office. Just enough to see to read my Bible. Just enough to show the color of the wall without blinding me. Just enough to let me see all those books I need to sort through. 

This little light isn't very big, but it was enough to give my heart a space to study. It was enough to give me a chance to read words my soul needed to soak up. It was enough to remind me why I really do love this room. It was enough to make me want to get back in here and start sorting through and making it a more usable space so I can spend more time in here, finding those words I told you yesterday are plumb lost. 

And the object lesson wasn't lost to me that just as a little light made a huge difference in my day, so perhaps the little light I am in my corner of the world could possibly make a bigger difference than it sometimes feels.