My father had planned for a vacation right after my sister completed her 12th exams. Dad wanted her to chill out after a hectic year of preps and exams and preps and exams. We were in Goa, in a wonderful villa overlooking the sea amidst a beautiful property. It was around the third day of our holiday, when we were relaxing after a para-sailing experience that we noticed my sister was slightly down. When dad asked her what was wrong, she said that she was home-sick. Mom, Dad and I were surprised and did not know how to react, considering that the very people who were at home were present at that moment. She said she liked the holiday but was beginning to miss home.
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There was this friend of mine at work who never looked forward to the holidays like how other hostellers do. She had opted for an individual room and though she preferred staying away from the hostel gangs, she was someone who would keep herself occupied some way or the other. She always used to tag along with us city dwellers and despite the considerable distance involved she used to manage and ask us not to worry. She used to come with us for movies and shopping and for anything and everything. Sometimes she used to spend time by herself cooking and reading and inviting us to her place. She maintained her place very well and she took special care in decorating each and every corner. She even told me that she looked forward to spending time in her 1BHK room than her hometown because this place made her comfortable and made her look forward to going home after a hard day’s work.
Home is where the heart is. But is it your home or home away from home?
I am emotionally attached to my home. I saw it being built from scratch. Along with the bricks and cement, my dreams and thoughts also went into the construction and that is why I can call this house my home. It’s been more than a decade since we moved in and every corner has some memory attached to it. All my problems and worries just disappear when I step into my balcony and sit on the swing (the traditional one) and just stare at the sky.
For people like my friend, who was looking for an opportunity to get away from an environment that prevented her from being herself, she was lucky enough to find a home away from home and build it from scratch. Yes the structures were present, but she got to fill up the place with memories and get into a comfort zone where she could smile and cry and vent out her frustrations in an environment that made her feel comfortable. Despite not being lucky enough to grow up in a place she could call home, she was lucky enough to find some place which she could call her home.
In case you’re wondering what I’m trying to convey, I was talking to a friend about how it would be difficult for people who are emotionally attached to their homes to move away to another city and set up a new home. That’s when the aforementioned friend stated, that some people like her who aren’t comfortable in the environment they grew up in, look forward to setting up a home at a home away from home. I was finding it tough to accept it, but then I realized it was because I liked the environment I grew up in and a few don’t get it that easily. And when things aren’t quite according to the way you want them to, there are people like my friend who find the right time to step out and still find a place that they would proudly and lovingly call their home.
That’s when we both agreed on something. A home need not necessarily be a place that you spend most of your time growing up, but it will definitely be a home if you step inside and find some peace of mind even if there aren’t any living beings to console you, wherever in the world it may be.
Fair enough?
December 1, 2015 at 4:12 pm
For me home is a place where I have all the people I love. I am not attached to a place like you. Maybe I lived in many places that I am devoid of such a feeling. And happy to read about your friend. Such people create their own happiness.
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December 1, 2015 at 4:43 pm
I love my home and I'm really in love with my city, too. Whenever I'm out of my home-town for a while, I feel a strange affinity for her. But yes, home is where you can comfortably put your legs on a table while sipping coffee… comfort and love , these are the main aspects… 🙂
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December 2, 2015 at 9:02 am
Home is the place where U can be Urself…
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December 2, 2015 at 5:09 pm
Though I moved many places, I am very attached to most of the places I lived in. Finally, I am living in our 'first owned' home. And I hope not to move out of it for the next decade or so. LOL. Yes, where you grew up plays a significant role on your attachment to places.
Btw, how are you guys doing in Chennai? I hope you are safe and sound. Take care, Ashwini.
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December 2, 2015 at 9:41 pm
Home for me is where my friends are where I feel comfortable. .where all those who live and care for me are
I have moved so many places but then I make new friends and I make it a home again.
How are you doing
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December 2, 2015 at 9:41 pm
Home for me is where my friends are where I feel comfortable. .where all those who live and care for me are
I have moved so many places but then I make new friends and I make it a home again.
How are you doing
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December 3, 2015 at 8:10 am
I've been on both sides, home & home away from home. I felt at home in each case. Instead of searching for peace at a location, why don't we search it in our minds, is what a friend told me when we were speaking on this topic. BTW, you like your job, you like your home, you seem to like everything! I wonder if there is something you don't like 😛
Destination Infinity
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December 5, 2015 at 4:25 am
The feeling of being Home is something irreplaceable. I'm attached to my place where my family and relatives live. Even though I long to travel places, at the end of the day home is where I look for my comfort. It is, I think, a default feeling. Nice read, Ashwini. 🙂
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December 6, 2015 at 1:22 pm
Very true.. Home is something special and one which is welcoming always. For me its always been a place where my parents and all loved one's are. Lovely post !! Will keep coming back for more !
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December 8, 2015 at 5:06 pm
Exactly my point. A place filled with love and memories 🙂
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December 8, 2015 at 5:10 pm
Oh yes, the city matters equally. The place that we grew in, every corner has some wonderful memories in our growing up years. That comfort and warmth can come from very few places, and when it comes, it is a special place for us 🙂
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December 8, 2015 at 5:10 pm
Oh yes! We dont have to worry about being judged.
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December 8, 2015 at 5:15 pm
When we make a place our home, we automatically get attached to it, how much depends on the place. And yea, when we go back to the places we grew up that nostalgia is just wonderful!
And thanks Latha. Luckily we weren't as badly affected as people in most parts of the city. We're getting back and standing up 🙂
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December 8, 2015 at 5:17 pm
Yea, it's about the people who make us comfortable and where we will always feel loved. And good for you, you are lucky that way to be able to recreate the magic of home,elsewhere.
I'm good Bikram, Chennai is getting back to normal and we're getting back to routine 🙂
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December 8, 2015 at 5:21 pm
Haha, who wouldn't like their homes. It's just that I make the best of what I have 🙂
It's all in the mind, I agree but sometimes just revisiting our homes will make us satisfied and happy for no reason 🙂
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December 8, 2015 at 5:22 pm
Thanks Rat 🙂
Completely agree with what you say as I belong to that category. I might travel the world but when I think of home there is only one place 🙂
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December 8, 2015 at 5:23 pm
Thank you Anila 🙂
Couldn't agree more, I belong to this category as well 🙂
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