Myth: We Must Fill the Void

It’s that uneasy sense of “in-between.” It’s letting go with nothing to grasp onto yet. It’s insisting on blind faith and trust while simultaneously squirming with discomfort.

This is the part we don’t talk about when it comes to clearing space. We don’t talk about the longing to go back, knowing you can’t, side by side with the future you hope for but that’s not guaranteed.

*Magic is just on the other side of discomfort*

This is the void. The liminal space between our old life and the new.

The space between an idea and a reality can be intense, disorienting and destabilizing. As humans, we want predictability, we want stability, and “sitting in the void” is an experience most of us do everything in our power to avoid. We carry this internal struggle into our external world too — we can often look around our homes and see this behavior manifested.

This all might sound really deep, but how we do the small things is how we do the big things. That’s why I made the first step of The Foundry Formula about Clearing Space. This step is vital to our evolution because to truly transform, we must clear out things of the past that don’t fit what we’re trying to create. We must clear out the old — things, thoughts, energy, beliefs, and behaviors to make room for the new. And yes, it’s often uncomfortable because at a time, these things DID work for us. But we’ve changed, or we want to change. And we can’t do that while operating under an old paradigm.

But Here’s The Rub

Removing physical items that we’re used to seeing and feeling every day creates a vacuum that most of us feel urged to fill. Visual emptiness, negative space, whatever you call it, subconsciously triggers feelings of discomfort. We may feel anxious, emotional or irritable and not know why. Our minds love to stay busy with noise and distraction. Take that away, and we’re left to reckon with what might be waiting for us underneath it all.

Many of us rush to fill our homes almost mindlessly because we loathe this tension — I’m guilty of it. When I first lived on my own, I’d see an empty windowsill or shelf and go to Home Goods or Target with the intention to fill the space. I’d undoubtedly wind up buying some trending or “cheap” items that I wound up disliking within a few months.

It's on purpose.

Our society is compulsive and impulsive — there’s almost no escape from advertisements, marketing and influence. It’s no wonder we are so quick to fill space.

But what if you could sit in that empty space just a little longer than you want to? What do you think your space would say to you? What might you discover about yourself or your home that you couldn’t quite see before?

The dangerous part is that we might find that we don’t actually need more stuff. We might realize we don’t really want to spend our hard-earned money at Home Goods or Target. We might get comfortable with the space between and make room for more than we ever could have dreamed to come through.

Clearing for Clarity

If I can’t decide what to do with a home design project, I leave it empty and wait. It sucks, and it’s a little boring, but it works. The perfect inspiration, conversation or element shows up exactly when it’s supposed to.

The Matter: Magic Lives in the Void

Sitting with discomfort without rushing to fill the void is inner Alchemy. It’s telling our nervous system, “This is uncomfortable, but I can tolerate it. I don’t need to do anything right now. The answer will come.” This is healing work, and it applies to a LOT more than just home design projects.

I believe our homes are healing vessels, and when we take the time to sit with them, we take the time to sit with ourselves.

So, embrace the liminal space. You never know what magic might be waiting in the void.

If you’re in the magical void and need a little help finding clarity, you can work with me one on one to create a custom Foundry Formula design plan tailored to you. Fill out this form to get started.