The bathroom, regardless of where it is located on the bagua map, is connected with the element of Water. There are at least two connotations for water: one is that water is connected to emotions (which we have already discussed) and the other is a connection to money: to take a bath is to take a financial loss; throwing money down the drain is to waste money.
All the water pipes and drains, along with the function of the room — to cleanse, relax and renew, and also to release and eliminate waste products – make bathrooms quite interesting places energetically. Problems with the plumbing can sometimes cause corresponding problems with our natural emotional releasing process, or with finances.
And then there is the decorating perspective: bathrooms can feel cold (cold porcelain) and hard at the same time, so it can be difficult to achieve a balance. We do need surfaces that are easy to keep clean; practical, but not clinical or industrial. We also want the room to be warm and inviting.
I am also always looking to keep clutter to a miminum. For me bathroom clutter accumulates in products: hair and skin products which didn’t work for me (but are still perfectly good, darn it!) Over the counter medicines and remedies that are not totally used up (never know when you might need those again.) And then there are the textiles: old towels that need to be saved for ah…I’m not sure. Home hair dying? Craft projects? Bathing the dog? These are perfectly good, serviceable towels. They just are no longer beautiful. How many old towels do we need?
We only have one bathroom in our home and it contains our linen closet, so a lot needs to happen in there. If you have several bathrooms in your home, clutter may not be much of an issue, but I think a lot of us have the problem with hair products. Salons have been super sizing us for years. I have learned to say no to the litre bottles of shampoo and conditioner that I know I’ll be tired of long before they are used.
© Deborah Redfern 2010. All rights reserved.
