The thermostat, by Leonor Henríquez

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When I lived in latitudes where “the climate does not exist”, it was not necessary.

Here in the sub-arctic, that little box that lives discreetly in a corner is the fundamental nucleus of the house.

Like a tiny brain, the thermostat controls, regulates and conserves the energy in the home for the well-being of its inhabitants.

But the curious thing about this story is that, recently, I had to transform into one, yes, into a thermostat.

I was commissioned with the task of writing a monologue from the point of view of a thermostat. What a prosaic assignment, I thought; me, the one that presumes to be deep and intense.

The client needed a script for an advertising video that promoted what is now called “Smart homes”.

I accepted the challenge.

I think it’s easier to write from the point of view of a purple mouse than from a…thermostat?

But the result was apparently successful, the client loved my proposal where I gave life, feeling and a bit of humor to the magic box. The commercial was filmed recently, and I was happily rewarded.

And so, this story ends, but I finalize with my reflection, because even from the most trivial things you can learn.

This experience stimulated me to pay attention and adjust the temperature on my home’s thermostat.

I found it, hidden behind a landscape of nostalgia.

Intuitively I pressed several buttons, without knowing much, but perhaps with the hope that, no matter if it is cold or hot outside, rain, or snow, here inside my body and my home, “my big body” as the poet says, feels wonderful.

It is the exact temperature of happiness.

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