As I mentioned in my post on Wednesday, our very own Katie Bennett is a finalist in the Design*Sponge essay contest!  All of the finalists’ essays have now been posted, and it’s time to vote for the winner.  I’ve loved reading the essays all week and seeing the differences and similarities in the ways that people define home (as it turns out moms are really important).  These are talented writers sharing intimate portraits of their homes and families, and I’ve enjoyed them all.  That said, Katie’s essay gets my vote, and not just because she’s my best bud.

What I love about Katie’s essay is that it is both tightly drawn and expansive.  Her submission spans her entire childhood and adult years, and encompasses no fewer than eight homes, all in the space of six paragraphs.  The essay is intensely personal and revealing, but also completely relatable.  As it is here on RHW, her writing is funny, poignant, and even poetic, but also refreshingly straightforward.

In case you are wondering, Katie did not ask me to write this, and I’m sure she’s red in the face and cringing as she reads it.  But just this once I’m adopting the mantra of the patriarch of Halibut Cove: Act First, Apologize Later.

To read all of the essays and vote, click here.  Voting continues through Tuesday morning at 10:00 a.m. EST.

Sorry, not sorry, Katie!