Things around us

Do you know Penhaligon's?  I received the above presents a few days ago and didn't know much about this brand before, so I searched for it a bit.  Penhaligon's is an English-born brand established in 1870 by William Henry Penhaligon, a Cornish barber who moved to London and who became court barber and perfumer to Queen Victoria.  They mainly sell perfume, but also body products like those in the above photo.

The interesting point is that the Duke of Edinburgh (Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II) and the Prince of Wales (Prince Charles, the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II *in that connection, his wife, Camilla uses the title Duchess of Cornwall) officially admitted using their products as their toilet requisites.  Penhaligon's shopping bag with gold embossing marks shows this prestigious fact.  
In the same way as Penhaligon's, Gilchrist & Soames is also an original UK brand.  The smell of their soap products is really nice and your hands will soften after using them.  It's worth trying them.

By the way, my point today is not about introducing how these brands are wonderful (of course, there is no doubt that these brands are amazing), but rather about how we choose the things around us in our daily life and how we are concerned about them.  I realized to extent our minds and way of living are influenced by things around us.  

Objects from dishes to body soaps, friends, and even jobs around us are what we chose more or less.  Although we can't choose everything, having our obsessions will make our life more enjoyable.  I just want to say that we should be aware of the things around us and be proud of them, as they lead to the fact that we should take care of ourselves.  For example, Gauguin's lifestyle looks too extreme in some ways, but I understand that choosing his truly favorite things is sure to result in his way of living in Tahiti and creating himself.   

お金をかけるかどうかの問題ではない。自分の周りにあるものに拘りをもつこと。全てでなくても1個でも、、そうすると人生がもっと楽しく、濃く、豊かになれるかも、と思う。もしかしたらそれは自分の人生に拘りをもつことに繋がっているのかもしれない、とも。

昔、友人と旅行に行く話をしていて、友達が海外のコスメブランドの話に夢中になっているのを見て、「何でブランドにそんなに興味があるんやろ、もっと面白いことが沢山あるのに。。。」と思っていたけれど、例えば広告に影響されてではなく、もしそのものの価値を理解していて、自分の気に入ったものを毎日身につけていたいという思いからきているのなら何と素敵なんだろう、、と今になって思う。

自分がいいなと思う人、いいなと思うものに囲まれて（若しくは想像しながら）暮らすのはどんなに贅沢なことか、、、自分の周りにいる大切な人、ものを長く、ゆっくり時間をかけて大事にしていくことは、しいては自分を大切にすることに繋がる気がする。自分の人生に少なからず影響するから。一生は一日の積み重なりと考えると、どういう環境で過ごすか、誰と一緒に過ごすかは重要なことのような気がする。ま、あまり深刻にならず、自分の好き、直感を忘れず、大切にしていけたらなぁと思っているだけです。

大空に羽根を広げてゆっくり今いる場所を俯瞰できるような、鳥のような人になりたい。