The Healing Power of an Open Door Policy
Would you invite strangers or your neighbours into your home? Making your place a public space can have unexpected upsides—especially if you embrace imperfection.
On Sunday, my husband returned from a boy’s trip away … but he wasn’t alone. When he arrived home after four days of me solo-parenting, he had two French backpackers with him. ‘You don’t mind if they stay here, do you?’ he asked. An hour later, their rooftop tent was set up in our driveway and we were sitting on our balcony as our kids entertained them.
This is not an unusual occurrence in our house. My husband’s ‘beige flag’ is returning from a trip away with plus-ones—people he’s met at the beach or campers he’s collected on his travels. Ever since we met ten years ago, our homes have had an ‘Open Door Policy’, no more so than our current house on the South Coast of Sydney. People come and go; visitors arrive without warning and it’s the hub of our neighbourhood. Do I love it? It’s taken some getting used to …
As a born-and-bred Londoner, raised with the manners of the English, an Open Door Policy is an alien concept. In England, people don’t just arrive unexpectedly. You make plans; you feather your nest; your prepare yourself for a visitor emotionally and logistically. Normally, you hope they’ll cancel.
So, you can imagine my surprise when I’ve embraced our Open Door Policy. In fact, I can see how it’s been imperative to my healing. Here’s why, and how you can emulate it in your own way: