If you have your own office at work, or even just your own cubicle, chances are it is decorated.

Why not? Unless doing so is against office policy (and I would hate to work in an office that has that policy), decorating your office space is a way of expressing yourself at work. This applies even if you work at home, like I do.

About 25 years ago, I visited a friend who worked for what was then a well-known internet service provider. My friend took me into the cubicle farm where she worked and showed me her workspace. It was covered in decorations. From her space, I could see the cubicles of some of her coworkers, and some of them were even more wildly decorated. Although that day was a Saturday and no one was at work, I could tell that this was a happy workplace.

My home office consists of a large corner of our spare bedroom, and I have decorated it to suit my own personality. At first glance, you can tell that I am a Garfield fanatic. I have two stuffed Garfields, two small Garfield models, and a COVID-era Garfield mask on display. I also have three beautiful Garfield cards, which were made by a good friend, tucked away between two of my reference books on my bookcase; I want to pin them to the wall but I don’t want to make excess holes in the wall, so I am torn.

There are also a 1998 Beanie Baby lion and a 2000 Maryland quarter bear on the shelf, as well as a 2014 Kool-Aid Days mug from my visit to Hastings, Nebraska to see my cousin and his family. (If you are from Hastings, you know what Kool-Aid Days are.) On the bulletin board above my desk are several Scripture verses I wrote out and cute postcards sent to me by friends; these make their home among the editing certificates and reference lists I have there.

In April 2025, six friends from a church ladies’ group I’m in made a generous donation to the Dementia Society of America in my father’s honor; he had passed away the previous month. I learned of this from a letter sent to me by the DSA’s vice president. That letter is also affixed to my bulletin board, so that I never forget how special these ladies are to me.

What decorates your office, if anything?