One doesn't have to live in a place for long, I have found, to find the home-like feeling of it. I was only in LA for a week, and I found I wanted to stay. I feel at home in LA, and in Ithaca, but of course there are family members there. I feel at home in Asheville and, to some extent in Cary, NC, but there are friends and family there, as well. And now, I have been in Bay St Louis for a week - I arrived last Tuesday - and I'm starting to feel "at home" here.
The effort is not done, of course. There is a continuing necessity to reach out beyond the walls of the house in which we live, and beyond the daily walks and rituals of grocery shopping and buying essentials.
I have been to the library several times. i have been to the school district offices and will visit the individual schools to see if I can volunteer. I checked out one florist and spotted another that I will stop and visit tomorrow. i chatted with a woman at the bakery who lives a few blocks closer to the ocean on the same street as I, and who invited me to stop by.
Tonight, at the computer (now that we have Internet at home), I will map a bike route that circumnavigates Bay St Louis. Perhaps it will become a daily ride.
I think I'll check out the Rotary Club meeting tomorrow at noon at the yacht club. If it ends up being something that requires a lot of money, I won't join, but if they just need a contribution of time, perhaps I will. I'll hand out business cards, too.
Home. A place becomes home as I get to know my way around and recognize landmarks. It becomes home when I can call people by name and have shared experiences with them. It feels like home when my personal space looks and smells and feels comfortable. I got my futon mattress today and napped on it this afternoon. Home. We have Internet and can communicate in a variety of ways from the house. Home.
When I lived with Annie, I loved being with her and her family; but it wasn't ever home because we always knew I wasn't staying. I definitely could have a home with her or with them, but it wasn't planned that way this time around. Nevertheless, I became more and more at home on the West Side, an area I'd never lived in before.
We get so comfortable in our small spaces, and we fear stepping out into the unknown. What this experience has taught me is that it doesn't take long to become familiar with a new place and with new people, and from familiarity comes a sense of belonging, and then ... Home.
The effort is not done, of course. There is a continuing necessity to reach out beyond the walls of the house in which we live, and beyond the daily walks and rituals of grocery shopping and buying essentials.
I have been to the library several times. i have been to the school district offices and will visit the individual schools to see if I can volunteer. I checked out one florist and spotted another that I will stop and visit tomorrow. i chatted with a woman at the bakery who lives a few blocks closer to the ocean on the same street as I, and who invited me to stop by.
Tonight, at the computer (now that we have Internet at home), I will map a bike route that circumnavigates Bay St Louis. Perhaps it will become a daily ride.
I think I'll check out the Rotary Club meeting tomorrow at noon at the yacht club. If it ends up being something that requires a lot of money, I won't join, but if they just need a contribution of time, perhaps I will. I'll hand out business cards, too.
Home. A place becomes home as I get to know my way around and recognize landmarks. It becomes home when I can call people by name and have shared experiences with them. It feels like home when my personal space looks and smells and feels comfortable. I got my futon mattress today and napped on it this afternoon. Home. We have Internet and can communicate in a variety of ways from the house. Home.
When I lived with Annie, I loved being with her and her family; but it wasn't ever home because we always knew I wasn't staying. I definitely could have a home with her or with them, but it wasn't planned that way this time around. Nevertheless, I became more and more at home on the West Side, an area I'd never lived in before.
We get so comfortable in our small spaces, and we fear stepping out into the unknown. What this experience has taught me is that it doesn't take long to become familiar with a new place and with new people, and from familiarity comes a sense of belonging, and then ... Home.
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