There's No Place Like Home

There's a lot to be said for travel and adventure and branching out in new and exciting cities where anonymity makes a refreshing change from the familiar. Wanderlust they say, is the irresistible desire to seek out and explore all that this world has to offer, and encompasses a pursuit that has consumed the hearts and minds of generations through both necessity and discretionary choice.

In Chinese philosophy, the concept of yin and yang depicts how apparently opposite or contrary forces can actually be complementary, serving as both independent and interconnected constructs. As a country with an intrinsic connection to travel, the Irish have refined the art of exploration to such a degree, that it has become an infamous cultural characteristic. Our natural propensity to fearlessly go forth and take our own tea bags to every corner of the earth, has only ever been counteracted by an unwavering devotion to Ireland, our county colours and the indestructible ties to a sense of family and home.

‘Home’ is an interesting phenomenon. It’s one of those things that has both tangible and intangible elements. To go home is the desire to feel whole, to know where you are and feel temporarily grounded in the ensuing craziness which can often consume our lives. It's a place that restores a soothing sense of calm and clarity that is difficult to wholesomely articulate, but no matter what the language, home is the nicest word there is. 

In my humble opinion, the linguistic limitations of the English language have somewhat failed to accurately convey the full extent to which the sentiment of 'Home' resonates within the human heart. The Spanish use the word ‘Querencia,’ to depict a place where you feel most comfortable and feel your most truly authentic self. While the French use the word 'Dépaysement' to communicate the dull little ache, after a long and stressful day, and the bittersweet longing for simple, unassuming moments shared with the people that you love in surroundings which are familiar.

Truefully, apart from the people I care about, I for one never imagined that home might be something I would really miss. We all dream about escaping our ordinary lives, the rain, the lack of opportunity and the stifling gossip which routinely circulates. 

However retrospectively, the failure to notice how beautiful small town life is, is a luxury only the uprooted can fully comprehend. Confucius, the great philosopher and all round smooth lyrical mastermind once said "The strength of a nation derives from the integrity of home" - that's because there's something very special about the normality of walking down a street and saying hello to a total stranger, because people back home take the time to acknowledge each other’s existence, unlike the disconnectedness of those who dwell in the city. 

In an often unfriendly world, genuine conviviality serves as a sharp contrast to the flat pack hospitality of urban chains and organisations and is something to be truly valued and enjoyed.Going for a coffee or drink in a cafe or bar to be greeted by people who know your name, and are never short of a smile or some kind of witty retort to keep you on your toes is good for the soul.

Despite the fact that the word ‘Home’ has universal warmth and symbolism, it is also wonderfully specific to every individual. Home for me is a little house on a hill, with picture perfect views overlooking a patchwork quilt of green and blue. It’s the feeling of relief when we pull into the driveway after a long absence to be bombarded by dogs as soon as you set foot in the door. 

Home means standing by the fire with a cup of coffee, talking to my mum and dad and laughing about the chaos my 94 year old great aunt is causing the local nursing home (my sincere apologies by the way). And as much as I preach about health, home personifies the nutritional loop hole, where it’s perfectly acceptable to eat home-made apple crumble for breakfast on the day of departure, because try as I might, I will never be able to replicate the taste of my mum’s cooking.

Although the strength of a person’s character is enhanced by the independence of travel, the constitution of a person is embodied by the place of our past, which has shaped how and why we came to be who we are today. 

No matter where we are in the world, home is about carrying a little bit of where we’re from everywhere we go, and as happy as I am to leave the safety of my little house on the hill and progress with my own life and adventures, I’m also immensely glad to return. 

The more you do, and see, and experience, the greater your understanding and appreciation for the fundamental things. As you get older you become increasingly aware that home is the fleeting carefree moments spent with friends and family which become rarer and harder to orchestrate. No matter how much we complain and get frustrated by its limitations, home is a place filled with nothing but yourself, and everything you have ever known.

If you too have left the place that you have lived and loved for one reason or another, sometimes home is simply a person. They are a human cup tea which warms you to your bones, and they are the people you can call when something goes terribly right or occasionally terribly wrong. 

In life, we will come and go from many homes. We may leave a room, a house, a town, or even a country, but that does not mean those places leave us.

What are the benefits of leaving home some may say? So that when you come back, you see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colours.

From Doha With Love.