This is me (down in front), circa, nineteen seventy something....probably about '79. My grandma and three uncles, in front of my parents homestead in Alaska. My grandparents resided there at this specific time.
"Home is a place you grow up wanting to leave, and grow old wanting to get back to."
John Ed Pearce
"I long, as does every human being, to be at home wherever I find myself."
May Angelou
"When you're safe at home you wish you were having an adventure; when you're having an adventure you wish you were safe at home."
Thornton Wilder
Those quotes ring true for me. How about you?
I always laugh a little when someone asks "Where are you from?"
I always feel like saying "Well, how much time ya got?"
If I have time I will say "Well, I was born and raised in Alaska, moved to Texas to go to college, married a Texan, moved to Russia for almost 2 years, lived in Prague, Czech Republic for 9 years and now live in Madrid, Spain."
Phew! Not an easy answer for me.
Depending on the circumstances or situation I might just say "The US."
We have come to use "home" very loosely. We use it when we talk about "going home to the US." We use it when we're out and about or traveling and need to head "home" to our apartment, wherever that might be.
Sometimes I dream of what it would be like to stay put in one place. Own a house and have the white picket fence. It's appealing some days.
Then I get to thinking about what God has called us to, all the things we've done, experiences we've had, places we've been. If I'm real with myself I realize that I would probably begin to feel a bit stir crazy with staying in the same place for very long. That's just not what God has called me to. If only we could have a little bit of this and a little bit of that.
God doesn't call any of us to make our home on earth though, does He?
How about you? Do you like staying put in one place or moving around a bit?
"If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and we will come to Him and make our home with Him." John 14:23
God doesn't call any of us to make our home on earth though, does He?
How about you? Do you like staying put in one place or moving around a bit?
"If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and we will come to Him and make our home with Him." John 14:23
If you left a comment and don't see it now, that's because I was playing around, trying out Disquis and decided I didn't want to use it.
ReplyDeleteEven though I've been in the US now over ten years it's still hard to know what is home. I have always felt a bit torn, being half and half. I do usually say I come from Italy. I know my mom feels excatly like you, having grown up a missionary kid (therefore lived in so many different places, Sicily, Lousiana, Florence, Texas, and later Rome and now Bergamo!). I love the quote of Maya Angelous you shared :) Home is wherever you are with the ones you share life with :)
ReplyDeleteSometimes I feel very split, growing up on one coast of the U.S. and now raising my family on the other coast. I'm just grateful for the technology that keeps me connected with my West Coast friends and family (and friends all over the world!). And you're right...this earth is not my home. I'm Heaven-bound! :)
ReplyDeleteI grew up in a small town on the California coast, went off to college, then came back here, got married and had kids. I love living here in this sweet little, old-fashioned town where you can't walk two steps out your door without seeing a friendly and familiar face. However, I love to travel, and often fantasize about how wonderful it would be to be able to experience living in different countries around the world.
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