Recently I was talking to my sister-in-law about the house that she and her husband are hoping to purchase. I had just seen some pictures of the place and had remarked that the house had a lot of potential. My sister-in-law responded with a laugh, “yes, it has a lot of potential!”
I suppose in real estate terms the house is a “diamond in the rough,” a “fixer-upper,” or a “handyman special.” There is no doubt the house needs a lot of work. But it has “great bones” and, knowing my sister-in-law’s great decorating sense, it will end up being a charming and beautiful home. I applaud her ability to see past what it is now, and see through to what it can become.
This conversation brought me back to my childhood growing up in a very small town in New Hampshire. At that time there wasn’t much to do on a Sunday afternoon after church. No stores were open (not that there were any in our town!), there was no movie theater or bowling, not much to do except use our imaginations. One of our favorite family activities was to pile into the car and head out for a drive, frequently exploring roads we hadn’t been on before. Many were narrow, winding, dirt roads full of scenic beauty and often we would pass old homes in various states of disrepair. My mother, the daughter of a home builder, would often remark, “that house could really be beautiful with a little bit of work.” She taught us to see beyond what was, to what could be. In essence, she taught us that everything (and perhaps everyone) has hidden potential.