Thursday, June 24, 2010

Rooms of One's Own

Long, long ago, I spent a weekend at the summer home of a Famous Canadian Novelist.  There, his lovely wife kept a little nook, beside a beautiful, large window, for herself.  In it, she placed a tiny, round table, with a pretty tablecloth, set for two.  This was her space.

As I was in my early twenties and had a whole apartment to myself, I wondered about this small separate space within a large, handsome lakehome. And then of course, I remembered Virginia Woolf.

I thought of Woolf again today when reading the New York Times.  The story about a married couple who share a trailer but keep separate sanctuaries--hers a very feminine one-room cottage that she renovated herself (the carpentry!  the purchasing of supplies!  the books inside!)--seemed a contemporary version of the Woolf narrative.

And although the NYT seems to be pushing a childhood theme (the gingerbread! the woods!), there is no Big Bad Woolf here, just a very resourceful woman who built her own house.  And it won't be blown down by huffing and puffing.

5 comments:

K.Line said...

The parents of the boyfriend?? :-)

I saw that article and loved it. I mean, her space doesn't work for me, but it is a balm for her soul. And she's done it so faithfully.

You know I have a room of my own - the sew-ga room. It is a great luxury.

Belle de Ville said...

If I had that fairy tale cottage I don't think that I would want to share it either....unless there was a handsome prince in the vicinity.

Thumbelina Fashionista said...

My husband usually occupies the living room while I occupy the bedroom when we want time to ourselves. It's worked out well.

La Belette Rouge said...

Is it very unfeminist of me that my first thought was that I would love my He-weasel to build me such a space( sans gingerbread)?

Contemplative Chaplain said...

This has been one of the ongoing "issues" [I hate that word, but it seems to accurately name the ongoing exhaustion of our marital argument] in my life. I so, so miss having a "room of one's own." Every member of my family has a room of their own (and the dog has a cage).

Envious, am I.