There is just something about being close to water that seems to bring out the best in people. And by water, I mean the sea, a river, a lake, or something similar. My favourite has to be the sea; I just love being at the coast, sitting on the beach and walking along the promenade. I might be in a bit of a bad mood, or be somewhat stressed and anxious, but as soon as the sea comes into view all of that negativity just seems to drift away. And on the whole, I seem to go home in a happier place mentally than when I arrived. I often talk to friends and family about the positive effects that being by water brings me and virtually all of them have stated that it gives them similar benefits and pleasure. Some call it the tranquil beauty of water.
How to enjoy the beauty of water in your home
I then started to think about how to bring all of the benefits, and beauty, of water into my home. If I was able to do so I would then be able to gain enjoyment and the positive effects a lot more often.
The answer was quite simple, all it needs is a few photos or prints of my favourite coastal areas printed and framed and strategically placed in various rooms of the house. It goes without saying that this isn’t as good as seeing the real thing in person but it’s most certainly the next best thing.
I did have a number of photos that could have potentially been worthy enough for the project but I decided that a return to these favourite places was required to give the job the full attention that it deserved. Yes, this was a real choir! I could have gone down the route of buying prints from a shop of these locations but I wanted the whole thing to be a lot more personal, plus I really wanted to go back to the coast!
On my return home after visiting the coast and armed with a vast number of photos it was then a case of choosing what I considered to be the best ones to have printed and framed. And then I had to decide which rooms and where to hang each of them. All of this may seem like a lot of effort but in reality, the whole project was one that my entire immediate family enjoyed as the children also became involved. They took their own photos and were very much a part of the decision-making process of which photographs to hang and where to hang them.
If at any time I feel somewhat low, unhappy, stressed or anxious, I then take myself to look at these various images and more often than not it helps to once again add a smile to my face. What I am viewing are my happy places and just seeing them takes me back there in my mind. It’s a kind of thought transfer; transferring what were negative thoughts into positive ones. The result is a much happier mind!