Saturday, July 18, 2009

Where do you call home?

Right now I am in sunny Florida, hanging out with one of my besties (to borrow a friend's term), Jamie! The only thing that could make it better was if the kids I have with me (Ethan and Jackson) were with a nanny and Bart was with me.

But I digress.
Today I wanted to talk about home.
Where do you call home?
What is home?
How can we return home to live with our Father in Heaven? (Oh, throwing some church at you!)

Really, though, where is home?

For me, I say, "Oh, I am from Vidalia, LA" BUT, what about the fact that I actually lived in Baton Rouge longer then I did Vidalia? What about the fact that now "home" is wherever I am with my husband and children? And, what if I wind up living in Omaha longer then the other places? I don't want to say Omaha is my "home"...it's missing my roots. Will it be "home" for my kids?

I still say, "I am going home for a visit this summer." BUT, my house/home is in Omaha. So confusing.

Bart, home is NOT the town you are born in. You just happen to have been born and raised in the same town your entire life. It does not count for the rest of us.

One thing I love about going home is stocking up on my favorite jambalaya mix, Oak Grove Smokehouse brand, made right down the street from Baton Rouge in Prairieville, LA. It is by far the best mix I've used...it beats the pants off of Zatarains or Tonys. Every time we go "home" we stock up and whenever someone from "home" comes to visit, they come bearing the gift of more mixes! (I don't do from scratch)

So, while I can't wait to go "home", I won't know if I am referring to LA or NE...where do you call home?

6 Words to brighten my day:

Kristen said...

I feel ya on being confused about home. Baton Rouge is still home to me, but I don't even have a home to go to there. Ogden is home since I've lived here for 4 years, but I say I'm going home when I got to Pennsylvania to visit the parental unit. My mom even tells people that I don't know where home is.

Stacy Hutchinson said...

My parents tried really hard to confuse me on this subject, but I consider Louisiana home. My mom is from Idaho and my dad grew up in Bogalusa, LA but he always dreamed of living in the wild west like the cowboys in all of those westerns he watched as a kid. I was born in Idaho, but I lived in Hammond/Ponchatoula from age 1 to 18. At age 18-20 I was "home"less with my parents in Idaho, Josh in France, me all over the country. I finally made it back to Louisiana and I've been here since (10 years). We love BR, but I'm okay with living anywhere as long as I'm with Josh and these kids of ours. I just don't like snow and I like vegetation, so that rules out a few places:)

Emily said...

I was just thinking about the same thing yesterday, actually. My sense of "home" is totally confused right now. I grew up in Utah, lived in Nebraska the last three years, currently live in Idaho, but will likely not be living in the same city this time next year. When we visit Utah, I don't feel like I belong there anymore, so I guess I'm pretty well homeless right now. It's weird.

Rebecca1217 said...

I've discovered home is where ever I am traveling too. "I'm going home to visit my parents"(Iowa). Leaving my parents its "I can't wait to get home."(nebraska) David calls me on this all the time because it confuses him. I believe home is where your heart is.(i know such a cliche)And as of this weekend I'm one step closer to that heavenly home.

The Awesome Rawsons said...

Though I grew up in New Orleans, I consider Baton Rouge to be my home. Its where I became the person I am today. So many wonderful memories with so many wonderful friends. I think N.O. would mean a little more if I didn't grow up in the ghetto and if my parents still lived there. but I have no one there to go home too. Pensacola, Fl also feels like home because my parents and brothers and grandparents all live there. i've been going there to visit my grandparents in the SAME house since I was born. San Antonio's becoming a home-like-place because we're making it one, but true to the roots home will always be Louisiana for me.

Anne A. said...

Jessica,

Home right now is in Bellevue, NE - near Omaha (one of your homes).

I was "Made in Taiwan" then my family moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts for my Dad to complete his Master's Degree in Education.

Home then became Orange County, CA then Santa Barbara for College, San Francisco for Graduate School & my 1st two years of teaching.

San Antonio was home for 8 years and now home is here in NE.

Home really is where the heart & family are.

Anne A.