Throughout, Flanders notes how difficult it can be to research or understand what everyday
houses and homes were like over the centuries; the versions of «home» we see depicted in classic works of art, for example, were often idealized, and there has been
little impetus, historically, to preserve humble homes for posterity (she offers the particularly stark example of the incredible scarcity of
authentic examples of slave quarters in the American South).
If you can let the
little things go, see the every day wear and tear of living an
authentic life at home and your
house shows it, you're setting the tone for how others see you and how you see yourself — as comfortable, real and perfectly imperfect.