4 Reasons to call it Home

This week we have been asked to describe our domicile that fixes upon four topics:
1. an object of sentimental value
2. a piece of furniture that has value to you or your family
3. aspects of a specific room
4. a description of a memorable event that took place in the home

The first thing that makes it home for me is an old beat up car that doesn't even run, sitting in our driveway, collecting pollen half of the year. However, to me its the coolest car ever. It was my grandfather's old work car that he used to pick me up from school in and go to the race track to bet on some horses, but that's not all. It was also my very first car when I was old enough to drive. My grandpa bought himself a new car and gave me the old one because my parents couldn't afford one at the time. It smelled like paint because that's what he used it for, but I was proud of it. Eventually, I was involved in a wreck and it was near totaled. Ever since then its been sitting in the driveway, where it has been my escape from the world by spending time fixing it up piece by piece. It means a lot to me because my grandpa passed away and that's all he was able to leave me along with his navy metals. I have vowed to restore it one day, and it will drive again.
The second thing that makes it home is the chandelier hanging over the the dining room table. When my parents got married and bought a house, it was one of the first items that they picked out together, or so I've been told. It moved with us to the apartment that we lived in for a while and is now at the house that we live in now hanging over the same dining room table. My parents always tell me that it is very special to them and to always hang on to it when they are gone and I have a place of my own.
The third thing that makes it home is the space under the dining room table. When I was little, my sister and I would hide under the dining room table because it was surrounded by boxes and other things, and the only entrance was under the chair that sat at the head of the table. My sister and I were the only ones small enough to fit. It was our fort of solitude. When would go under there and play Uno and draw pictures; it was our escape. Now, every time I see a dining table, I am reminded of those times.
Last but not least, the fourth thing that makes it home is an event that takes place every time I go back home to visit and that is dinner at the kitchen table. As a kid I wanted to watch television while we ate, but my parents made us sit together at the table an eat, while listening to music and talking about our day. Now that I'm older and not home all the time, I have learned to appreciate it and look forward to it when I go home. It gives us all a chance to catch up with whats happening in our lives now that we're all older and don't get a chance to see each other that often.
In The Poetics of Space, Gaston Bachelard discusses how a certain smell, darkness or lightness of a room, or even a piece of furniture can cause us to recall a past memory in our childhood, whether good or bad. I find a lot of truth in this because every time I smell paint, it reminds me of my grandpa's car, and every time I see a dining table, it brings me back to my childhood days. As architects, when designing spaces we have to keep in mind that we may be causing the people to remember their past whether good or bad and make it experiential for them.