For the longest time, I used to think that home was just a physical place, you know a building, normal four walls,roof and a gate, I mean, the house where you sleep, wake up, and keep your all your belongings growing up, that was the only definition of home that made sense to me in a lot of ways, at least that's what I thought, you go out, you come back home. Simple.
But the. as I got older, I started to realise that home is not always a place, sometimes, home is a feeling, sometimes, home is a moment, sometimes, home is a person, and sometimes, home is a place you never expected to feel attached to.
It sounds strange, right abi? Then how can a place you have never lived in feel like home? how can someone who is not related to you feel like home? but somehow, it happens, and when it happens, you just know it deep within.
I have been in a place before that felt like home even though it was not my home at all, I remember the first time I spent a long time at my friend’s house,truth is It wasn’t planned, i just went there to visit, and somehow I ended up staying longer than I had expected,and from the first day, I felt comfortable, nobody was interrogating me, nobody was making me feel like a burden, and I could just sit quietly and nobody would ask, why are you quiet? I could talk and laugh freely without feeling like I was saying too much, I could even go to the kitchen and help myself to water without feeling any kind of awkwardness.
They are small things, but see they really matter, I remember lying on the bed that night and thinking to myself, why do I feel so relaxed here? why does this place feel so familiar even though it is not even my house? that was when it dawned on me that comfort is not always tied to ownership, like you do not have to own a place for it to feel like home, you just need to feel safe there and that's just it.
Another time, I have experienced this same feeling was in a classroom, not because the classroom was special or something , noppe, but because of the people that's were there, we do laugh a lot, we shared stories, we complained about life, we supported each other, truth is that space slowly became more than just a place for learning, It became a place where I felt seen and heard, a place where I could show up as myself without pretending any way
And honestly, that is what makes a place feel like home, not the paint on the wall, like not the furnitureand not how fine the building looks at all, it is the energy, It is the people, it is how you feel when you’re there.
I also believe strongly that some people are home.
There are people you can be around and you don’t feel the need to impress them, you don’t feel the need to filter your words too much, you don’t feel the need to hide parts of yourself, you can be tired around them, you can be quiet around them, you can be playful around them, you can even be emotional around them.
And they still stay.
Those kinds of people are rare truly...
For me o, my family gives me that feeling, especially when I see that they are genuinely happy, there's no tension and drama, just laughter and very normal conversation, in these kind of moments, I feel really grounded, I feel like I belong , I feel like this is my safe space.
My children also do make me feel that sense of home, when I look at their faces, when they smile, when they run to me, when they are excited to tell me small stories about their day, in those moments, nothing else matters, the stress fades away, the worries too reduce, It feels like my heart is in the right place.
I think home is anywhere your heart feels light.
Home is anywhere you don’t feel like you are walking on eggshells.
Home is anywhere you do not have to constantly explain yourself.
Sometimes, home can is a friend’s house where you can sleep and wake up without feeling uncomfortable or anything, sometimes too, home can be park where you sit quietly and just breathe and have your thoughts to yourself.
Sometimes, home can be an online space where you feel you are really accepted and also understood, even though you have never met the people physically.
And sometimes, home is just one person who listens to you without even judging you in anyway
As I grow older, I am learning not to force connections, not every place will feel like home, not every person will feel safe, and that is really okay, The moment you start paying attention to how people make you feel, you begin to understand where you truly belong.
I have also realised that home is something you should cherish once you find it, whether it is a place or a person, don’t take it for granted.
See , hear the truth, genuine comfort is not common in this world, see a lot of people are surviving in spaces where they feel misunderstood, unseen, and unloved.
So if you have a place that feels just like home, protect it with all of your heart, If you have people who feel like home, hold them very close to you
At the end of the day, home is not about the location at all.
Home is about connection.
Home is about peace.
Home is about belonging.
And see yes, it is very possible to walk into a place that you have never lived in before and the. just feel like you are exactly where you are meant to be.
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