This morning, Rachel and I were talking about home. We often talk about plans and projects, and what we’ve built here over the years; sometimes, though, we talk about home in its hidden sense, the feeling that lies behind our patch of ground in the plain light of day.
What is home in the hidden sense for you? Does it align with your patch of ground?
When the two senses of home align, that is a sign of an integrated life. In such a life, there is no need for somewhere else. Other places may be fun and interesting, but they are not required.
There are many reasons why a person’s sense of home may be misaligned. War, addiction, poverty, violence, and other abuses can rightly, or at least understandably, drive people from home. People in these situations need help to find a new, integrated life.
At the same time, so many of us have been taught to be unhappy at home. Ambition, greed, entertainment, and lust wrongly drive people from home. The patch of ground for these folks is utilitarian. Life, as they see it, is elsewhere—at work, on vacation, in imagined worlds.
Maybe the desire for an integrated life is not present in everyone. Maybe some folks have other worthy aspirations. For me, however, the only place I need to be is home, in the warm heart of my world.