No Place Like

The blog post I did earlier today (which would have been written last night if I had gotten my act together) was written on my best friend's laptop. It's sad how novel and happy this made me. I had no idea I would feel so special blogging on someone' else's computer. Silly, yes, but true. I felt like I was getting away with something. I always like feeling that I'm getting away with something.

My roommate and I had a good evening. The person who annoyed us on Project Runway went home. Dinner was nice and we were both in rather good moods. Even the cats were mostly friendly. I like evenings like this. I think one of the things that makes the place you are living in a 'home' is having evenings like this. Okay, maybe someone getting kicked of a reality show isn't needed, but you know, the mutual enjoyment of something. For us it just happened to be someone getting kicked off of a reality show.

When I was a kid, I didn't really understand how important having a home was. I had places where I lived, but my mother was never really stable enough to make those places homes. It was closer when I lived with my grandparents, but enough. I always felt like an invader, like someone who truly wasn't wanted.

It wasn't until I was an adult and able to make my own decisions about what would happen in my life that I started to value the concept of Home. Home is safe. Home is relaxed. Home is casual. Home is nurturing. Home is fun. Home is loving. Home is giving. Home is calm.

Of course, even the best of homes can't always be all of these things. Sometimes, circumstances go sideways and your home is NONE of these things. However, once you have it and you know you can have it, you fight as hard as you can to get it back. Once you have a home, you want to keep it no matter what.

Home doesn't have to be a location. If your home is connected to people or animals or a state of mind, you can move from place to place and still feel home. Home doesn't have to be perfect. In fact, sometimes the challenges of a home and how you overcome them are what makes it home for you.

I love the rituals of my home. I love how we have traditions that follow the seasons. I love it when we cook together. I love it when we find new ways to make it work better for us.

I love that my home is not just a haven for me but for other animals. We take care of cats, both indoors and out. Humming birds live part of the year in bushes in our front yard. Other birds shelter in our trees.  A patch of mint and a patch of petunias  give both food and shade to many bugs and birds during the summer. We have a safe place for them.

So yes, as someone nearing her 40s, I must say I am quite proud of this home I am part of. It's one of the many things that has kept me going over the years. It's a concept I finally understand and one I'm happy to have.