Quick – look around you. What does the space look like? What color are the nearest walls? Where are doors, windows, plants, trees? Can you tell what time it is just based on the light?

The most important question of all: How does that space make you you feel? We’ve often noticed that our physical location influences how we feel. A front porch at the end of the day will encourage us to unwind, for example, while a bright sunlit kitchen with fun artwork and cooking gadgets within reach might inspire Sunday breakfast.

“Spaces” is a new feature here at So There’s That which thinks about how the physical spaces we find ourselves in affect us so much. In this new feature we will talk about big spaces, like city streets, and small spaces like kitchens, yards, and even where you work. We’ll look at backyard nooks perfect for coffee in the morning and wine in the afternoon and we will give quiet thanks for that corner in your child’s bedroom where he or she might discover reading for the first time.

We will even check out bigger spaces – city streets, sidewalks – where that personal, intimate feeling arises.. What about the playground at your kids’ school? Perhaps that corner of the Starbucks where you sat Sunday morning? So sit down, look around you, and think about where you are and how you are feeling, right now.