Is the Home an extension of the Heart?

Our wedding hashtag #HomeIsWhereDeHartIs was a cute little play on a well known phrase. At the time of our wedding that's all it was, nothing more, nothing less. As I have grown in my roll as a wife and now mother I realize that phrase, Home is where the Heart is goes so much deeper. I realize now that my home may be an extension of my heart spilled out to fill the walls of a shelter with truth, beauty, goodness, love, light and warmth.

The woman’s soul is fashioned as a shelter in which other souls may unfold. - St. Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein)

Edith Stein is really the voice of the modern woman. She understood the beauty of femininity and the role of maternity better than many of us alive today. When asked what I think it means to be a woman, part of my answer encompasses the notion of this quote. If our soul is a metaphorical shelter, is the physical shelter an extension of our soul?

Is the Home an extension of the Heart?

Praying with this idea that the woman’s soul is a shelter and what if home is really a manifestation of my heart outside of my body, I can't help but think of baby Jesus in the manger. Yesterday was the official end of the Christmas season on the Church calendar, but the message of the manger is still on my heart. Even if I just packed away the nativity.

The King of kings born in a stable. I've always thought the point was to humble and to humanize Him & maybe that is part of it. But what if we have been looking at it through the lens of the modern world, where the setting is often the focal point?

Maybe in the birth of Jesus the stable isn't a stable at all, but the most beautiful and perfect home for the Savior of humanity. Though Mary's fiat the stable becomes a home where her whole heart resides.

What if the magnificat of Mary expressing the love of her Son, God incarnate, transformed the stable into the palace of the King? Magnificat anima mea Dominum

And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior." Luke 1: 46-47

My goal for the new year is to be intentional with my time so that I may become the shelter where my family unfolds. Part of that intentionality is to create a beautifully organized space that prioritizes prayer & promotes rest. As we put the final bow on the Christmas season and set our sights on Lent, let’s not forget that our preparation should be both interior and exterior. As wives & mothers, we must fashion our hearts as a shelter for our family but we too must create our homes to be havens.

Spend some time in prayer this week & ask the Lord to lead you toward his plans for you.

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What are your goals for the new year? Share them with us on Instagram @henryhawkinscatholicgoods

In Christ,

Kate