Home is your essence.
A friend of mine recently shared: "You can give a kid roots even in a family that moves a lot. We do this by keeping traditions, keeping some routines the same, and taking some important objects with us wherever we go. We are also intentional about keeping up with some relationships, especially family. For us, home is wherever we are all together. It’s the relationships with each other that give us roots." (Thank you, Lindsey Carter, for these beautiful words.) The word home has been on my mind a lot lately, as I've been preparing - logistically and mentally - for an upcoming monumental-to-me life change.
I grew up in a small mining town, my dad’s hometown as well, where everyone pretty much knew everyone. That same town has been serving as my family’s home-base for the past two years, while we’ve been traveling the world. And it feels like some kind of interesting catch-22 twist that I am sharing the exact geographical location (that gave me roots as a child) with my own two children, who don’t know what it’s like to truly have roots in a particular area.
But being geographically rootless does not mean being without roots at all. My husband and sons are three of the most grounded people I know. Our roots are who we are, our internal foundation; not merely an attachment to our external surroundings, but a necessary element in the formation of our character. Roots help create the individuals we eventually become.
As my kids grew up, their dad and I promoted the idea that home was anywhere we were together. Our rituals and traditions were always with us. They were following us wherever we went, not staying behind in a specific house or city.
A blog post I wrote in September 2012, a couple of months after we’d made the decision to sell our permanent residence and become global nomads, is still relevant today three years later. we are headed toward not having an actual physical place to call home and during the process of geographically untethering our lives, we have discussed/explored what home really means to us
we’ve discovered that home is an emotional place a feeling that all is well as long as we are together a place where we support and encourage and love and inspire each other
we’ve liked all the houses we’ve called home through the years special moments within the walls of each house will forever be part of our cherished memories
but we know that wherever we find ourselves in our wanderings, we will be safe. we will be settled. we will be home. I equate feeling at home with seeking wholeness.
My sense of home feels kind of messy at the moment, and I am once again experiencing those never-unfamiliar-but-always-surprising-nonetheless “where do I belong?” feelings. Searching, exploring, trying to discover my place in this wide wide world.
Some days, my home opens its shutters and lets in the light. Other days, the rooms are shadowed, dark, and even a bit torturous. Dreams and hopes mixed in with disappointments and valuable lessons. These ingredients are introduced separately, but together transform and create a new recipe for living (sometimes, perhaps often, in a new environment).
I am currently caught between where I am and where I want to be. But I know that, for now, it’s an okay place to hang out. It’s just me, doing what I do from time to time: rechecking my direction, adjusting and fine-tuning my why, keeping things compelling and new, engaging my soul in this journey called life. I may stumble, but as long as I am kind to myself and allow things to unfold organically, I will be fine. I am receiving clear messages that it is time to begin anew. Finding your place in this world is not a geographical quest.
Home simply means wholeness. Home is your essence.
What does home mean to you? Is it a place? Or is it a feeling?
When you take the time to look carefully inside, are you comfortable and happy with who you are? Are you home? ******* Click to receive my studio notes in your inbox each week. (And get my complimentary guide to the essence7 journey as my gift to you!) [maxbutton id="1"]
