No place like home

by Mike on December 27, 2011 · 5 comments

Dorothy, where is home?When you close your eyes and click your heels together like Dorothy, what do you see as home?

We are about to leave a house in Las Vegas. A real house, our first “grown-up” house — one with a garage, washer/dryer, neighborhood pool and playground, and kitchen pantry full of Trader Joe’s goodies. We even have a guy named Shawn who delivers jugs of water every two weeks, a purveyor of comfort in the desert.

Our first grownup house Our first “grownup” house on Rainbow Dream Avenue in Las Vegas

It’s been so wonderful to have this for the past two years, as Ang and I have lived for so long in various (small) apartment rentals in New York City.  But as tough as city life was, we always put in an effort to make the place our own, perhaps in an unconscious effort to feel settled and secure in light of the very unpredictable careers we have. We paint the walls, hang our family photos, lay down a brick patio in the backyard (see Williamsburg, Brooklyn photos!) and host dinner parties.  We try to make our physical space safe, familiar, and comforting.

Nap time for the boys in the house Nap time for the boys in the house

For me, home includes those moments within those walls. Home is backyard barbeques and Sunday Sauces.  It’s a bowl of cereal first thing in the morning, and a late night snack while watching SNL.  It’s throwing open the blinds in the kitchen before feeding Max breakfast, singing “Welcome to the day!”  It’s movie night when my wife inevitably conks out during opening credits, and guilty pleasure reality TV.  A nap on the couch with Turkey the cat curled up on my lap.  It’s cleaning out the garage and taking out the trash.  Spring cleaning, and the mysterious junk drawer.  It’s roughhousing with my son on the living room carpet (and his subsequent puking), and forts made of couch cushions.  Running from and then reluctantly to (with a shoe in hand) various spiders and insects that invade our space. It’s trading shoulder rubs with Ang, rainy day board games, and cooking my stepmom’s stuffed cabbage recipe. It’s the neighbor who watches the cat when we’re away, and the other neighbor who watches TV too late and too loud. It’s looking in on Max as he sleeps, and drifting off to dreamland with Ang curled up next to me.  Home is filled with those we love. It’s all of this and more.

So what will become of home, once we move out and start our adventures on tour? What will make us feel safe, familiar, and comforted?

The front door of our house in midtown Sacramento The front door of our house in midtown Sacramento Our snowy Williamsburg, Brooklyn backyard Our snowy Williamsburg, Brooklyn backyard

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I want to believe that home is a state of mind created by familiarity, security, and peace.  If home is filled with those we love — family — and they are in motion alongside you, ambling on the same path you’re taking, living those adventures with you, isn’t home essentially portable?

Our bedroom in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn Our bedroom in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn

We are about to embark upon a truly unique and exciting odyssey. We’ll be living in a different city almost every month with barely enough time to find our favorite restaurants and coffee shops, before it’s time to move on to the next locale.  We will have to pack light.  We will lose things along the way.  We will get lost.  We will meet new friends.  These things, I know. But the question remains: Can we find home in a life lived on the road?

To our friends and readers: When you travel, how much of home do you take with you?

You might also like:

{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }

Ron December 27, 2011 at 9:08 pm

This entry was fun to read and that is a great photo of the boys all together on the Devan. When ever we leave home, I think it is the heart of travelling in unity that I [we] take along. This way, no matter where we end up, we are still one in heart.

Reply

Mike December 28, 2011 at 12:17 am

Ron, that is a beautiful sentiment. Congrats on your new baby girl, and I look forward to meeting you, Katrina and Jana sometime soon. Thanks for reading and I am happy to hear your thoughts along the way!

Reply

GGC January 30, 2012 at 7:05 am

What a great blog

Reply

Cancel reply

Leave a Comment

{ 2 trackbacks }

Previous post:

Next post: