Just what is it about home that makes people keep coming back no matter how far away that they travel in this world? Is it their stuff? Is it the sense of security? Is it family? Is it their beloved pet?
What does the word home mean to you? Does it make you think of Mom or Dad? Does it make you think of your siblings and you playing together as kids? Is it all of the memories wrapped up within four walls? Is it that sense of security you felt when you were tucked into your bed at night pretty sure that there were no monsters lurking in your closet or under your bed? Why, because your Mom or Dad reassured you after they gave you a hug or kiss goodnight.
Is home the meals you had together as a family? Is home the family traditions and holidays shared? Is home the conversations? Is it the debates and even occasional fight? Is it knowing that no matter how much you disagreed with each other or at times couldn’t even stand each other’s face, that at the end of the day you still knew you were loved and you would do anything for them? Were you itching for a fight with anyone who thought of messing with your little brother or sister? Were you the happiest kid on Earth when your Mom or Dad played with you or read your favorite stories? Did home give you a sense of identity and know that you and your family were shaped by where you grew up and where you called home? Are your roots planted in a certain place and a certain home? Are you proud of your town, your state, and your home?
Was home a sanctuary from life? Was home a way to avoid your problems? Was home a way to get away from school and the tests or that kid on the playground who just didn’t like you no matter what you did? Was home the place where you knew where the best earthworms hung out or where the perfect branch was to sit on? Was home a place that stored your book collection or maybe your dolls? Was home a place where you tinkered with gadgets? Was home a place where you knew that you had your space and a sense of inner peace?
If you moved a lot, what was home to you? Was it knowing that no matter where you went, as long as you had family and love, then you had ‘home.’ Or was home a place that you wished for and instead struggled bouncing from one lousy place to another never knowing what was really home and what was really forever? Was home something that you wanted to give your own family one day because you never really had a great one growing up?
Home is so much more than just a structure. Home is something that we desire. Home is something that we long to go back to when we are away. Home is simply precious.
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© Kristalin Davis and Kristalin Davis’ Musings on the Human Condition, 2017.
