Decoration, comfort, lamps … these are the things I didn’t think much about when furnishing my new apartment last fall. While most people would be thinking: we need a rug in here—I was thinking finally I can live with friends! I was more focused on the freedom of having my own place than I was how the place looked, or even felt. However, about a month ago I began feeling differently. I looked around my six-month-old apartment and thought: why is everything so incredibly beige? I needed a change. I wanted my apartment to feel like a home.

So, to the bewilderment of my roommates, I started changing things. I brought a colorful rug for the living room back from my hometown (even though the whole place is already carpeted). I bought a tapestry for above the couch, and a color-changing lamp for beside it. Then I got some potted plants for my shared bedroom, another tapestry, pictures for the wall—you get the point. I decorated. But why did I feel the need to do all this? Something about the never-ending beige-ness of our apartment scared me, and sometimes it still does. I think the beige color reminds me of the absence of my parents, who are masters of colorfully decorating every room in our house. The color seemed to whisper to me: you are young and inexperienced in this world. I wanted to show my apartment who’s boss. By decorating my living space, I began to feel more like an adult. I began to feel more confident and capable of taking on the world by myself. So thus, I learned the importance of decorating. Decorating can give you a lot more than pretty things to look at. Decorating can give you strength and happiness in your living space, which works wonders in altering the rest of your life.

Let’s take a bit more about making your living space comfortable, which I would argue is more important than decorating. Consider how much it could negatively impact your life to go to sleep on a hard mattress every night. You’ll suffer through each nocturnal hour, tossing and turning. In the morning, you may be tired and sluggish—and this continues for weeks, or even months. Or perhaps you have no water filter, and the tap water gives you mysterious stomach aches for a long time. Or perhaps you have no extra blankets in your living room, and every time you want to watch a movie, you shiver in the cold. I understand the feeling of guilt when buying something for yourself that is not absolutely necessary. However, I have recently come to understand that while ultimate comfort may not be a necessity for two nights in a motel, it is a necessity for a happy life while in your living space. Comfort affects every aspect of our lives, and you should furnish your living space until you have no complaints. After all, most of us spend the majority of our lives inside. It’s worth the investment.

Hopefully I have convinced you of the importance of decoration and comfort. I cannot coach you on what to buy, nor what comforts to invest in—as every person is different in that respect. However, I will say that it helps to listen to your body when buying comforts and to your fears when buying decorations, for part of their job is to quell them.