a familiar or usual setting : congenial environment; also :the focus of one's domestic attention <home is where the heart is>
"Where do you feel most at home?"
This was a prompt that I randomly flipped to this afternoon in my bedside thought Q&A a Day journal. As I searched my mind for the answer, I began to explore what home means to me. I arrived at this: Home is not a physical place, but more a state of mind. Home is comfort, it is safety, it is where I am the most myself. It is not a room, building or domicile. Structure, walls, windows and doors can not offer me those things. It is the people who I call my loves who make home, home. Wherever I am, if I am with my family-- my most loved people in this world-- then I am home.My partner in life is home to me. He steadies me. He is where I rest. He is where I re-energize. Wherever he is, is where I want to be. My children are home to me, too. Their smiles, embraces and voices all breathe life into my spirit and make me know where I belong.
But beyond all of that, when I really search for the raw answer, what I know deep down is that home resides within me. I, ultimately am my home. My heart, my soul, my thoughts is where I exist. No matter what happens in my life, or where I am, I need to tend to and care for myself so that I will always feel at home.
Loving yourself is a good start to feeling at home no matter your circumstance. Knowing who you are... having a good sense of self is imperative. I know that a lot of times women who are mothers experience a loss of self. I certainly did. I poured so much of my focus, energy, love into my children, without regret, that I forgot to do the same for me. I don't think this type of self-sacrifice benefits our little ones. What I have since discovered is that taking care of me is just as important as taking care of them.
When I am well cared for, healthy, strong, I am a better mother. When I have a genuine sense of self, when I reserve time to be involved with my own interests and passions, I model wholeness to my kids who will sooner rather than later be adults themselves. I want them to see me happy, positive, healthy, because this is what I want for them.
For me home is so much more than a clean, organized, perfect house. Home is a well-cared for self. What is home to you?
