A hearth for autumn to warm your heart
A celebration of autumn
The time had come to prepare the first hearth of the season. And what better way to celebrate autumn than to bring a little of the outdoors in, in all its glorious colours and abundance.
Not having a fire-burning hearth of my own, I took great delight in helping my friend Sharon dress hers in her Somerset farmhouse.
First, we needed to gather the ingredients
We took branches of fiery red and amber leaves from her Liquidambar tree.
Gathered pine cones from a fallen Maritime pine.
Raided her greenhouse for plump pumpkins.
And picked the most colourful dahlias from her garden – and still they keep coming!
Nature provided almost everything we needed. To this we added a collection of candles of various shapes and sizes and we were ready to begin creating our autumnal masterpiece.
Then the moment of truth – lighting the fire
Suddenly, everything sprang into life.
The heat soared, the flames danced, the colours deepened and glowed in the firelight.
What had begun as a creative exercise had become something altogether more enchanting.
There was a stillness amidst the crackling flames.
A moment to pause, to admire, to be mesmerised by the flickering light and the warmth of the fire.
To feel the simple pleasure of being at home.
The temptation to curl up on the sofa with a good book was great but would need to be satisfied later.
Your hearth
Your hearth doesn’t need to be as grand as Sharon’s to deserve the title.
Ours at home, for instance, is a humble electric fire that flickers.
It’s currently being dressed in a maritime theme, in keeping with our life beside the sea.
Your hearth doesn’t need to be a fireplace at all. It might be
- A windowsill catching the afternoon light.
- A shelf displaying some favourite treasures.
- The centrepiece of your dining table.
- A small altar hosting a single candle, with a chair beside it where you like to read, reflect or meditate.
It matters not its size, splendour or location but the intention you give to it.
In creating such a place, we acknowledge something our ancestors understood so very well: that the hearth is not simply a source of warmth, but the symbolic heart of the home – and, in some mysterious way, a reflection of the heart of the matter within ourselves as well.
An extract from my book, Hearth: The Place You Return to and the Life You Make There, explains:
The significance of the Hearth
In both Ancient Greek and Roman households, the hearth was more than just the fire at the centre of the home. It was the sacred domain of the goddesses Hestia and Vesta, guardians of domestic life, the family and the household itself. Families often kept small altars and made offerings to honour this invisible yet ever-present influence, believing that a well-tended hearth invited the protection and blessing of the goddess and therefore a good life.
Tending this flame was not only a duty, but also a sacred act. In return, Hestia and Vesta, representing the qualities of purity, order and reverence, reminded the householder that the divine resides not only in the temple but within themselves, their home and the daily rhythms of life.
A warm invitation extended to you
Why not steal a moment to create, decorate or simply give a little extra love and attention to your own hearth, however you choose to interpret it.
Some hearths might be grand, others wonderfully modest.
Some might be filled with treasures gathered over a lifetime, others with nothing more than a candle, a flower or a beautiful stone.
And behind every hearth there’s a story.
Then celebrate this special moment by preparing a pot of tea or sipping a luxury hot chocolate – and do absolutely nothing but sit and watch the flames.
From the warmth of my hearth to yours, love Mary
