Entangled in Lamps

My subject this blog post is much lighter, excuse the pun.  Decorating and redecorating our new house has been a challenge that has left me entangled in lamps, among other things.  Lamps, pillows, rugs, and the like are the accessories that add personality to a room.  I accessorized our new home with items we already had and by getting new things.

One new find was a sturdy, classic-shaped, ‘marble’ lamp base that I envisioned for our foyer.  I just needed to buy a lampshade for it.  I made multiple purchases and returns because matching lampshade sizes and shapes to a base is not easy.  A specialty lamp shop gave me good advice and the lamp hardware that I needed, but the $100 lampshades were overpriced for the consignment price tag of my base.  Too much effort for one silly lamp ended with a look that didn’t go well in the foyer.  The lamp is now on the porch where its weighty base may withstand a hurricane.

I’ve been trapped in other lamps too.  One cut glass lamp from our former home seemed like it would work well in the new living room.  Again, it needed an updated lampshade and I splurged on a cut glass finial, from the aforementioned lamp shop, to top it off!  When I put the new shade and finial on, I discovered the lamp had cracked in the move.  Oh well, gives new meaning to the description, cut glass.

Another splurge had been the purchase of a pair of pineapple lamps from a friend’s estate sale before we moved.  The lamps weren’t outrageously priced but on the high side for that kind of sale, I thought.  I bought them as a treat to myself in anticipation of our move south;  they were quintessential Southern style!  Again, on unpacking, it turned out that one of the lamps had cracked and been repaired which I had not noticed when I bought it, and surprisingly my friend had not divulged.  We have since freshened up the pineapple bases with new paint and I adore the rattan lampshades they came with!

And lamps are just a part of it; there are still the pillows and rugs and all the rest!  I was and am entangled.  The house and its furnishing can encumber me.  I enjoy a lot of the decorating, but I realize that it is not all a good use of my time, money. and energy.  Material things are temporal.  Interior design is not important in the big scheme of things.  God allows us to enjoy beauty and gives us pleasure in creating but keeping its value in proper perspective is important for me. Hebrews 12:1-2 reminds us of this and of the need to stay focused on Jesus:  “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin* that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

* I am not suggesting that the pastime of decorating is sin.  Activities and objects become sin when they become more important to us than Jesus.

Author: Brenda Proulx

Wife, mother and grandmother, educator and someone who thinks about the things I observe. I am the daughter of a writer; my dad's career was in the field of journalism. More significantly, I am God's child, a person believing in Jesus Christ and in His timeless Word. Blogging is new to me but I feel like I've always had a pen in my hand. I jot notes in my planner, mark papers, underline verses, write many letters, and occasionally draft articles for work or church. When I am not holding a pen, I am probably cuddling a mug of coffee. View all posts by Brenda Proulx