Just thinking (again) what it means to be "HOME".
I am wide awake at 4 AM before we go to see a house for the 4th time! We have been looking at townhomes in Bradenton for about a month. Today we will visit with Steve ( a former home rehabilitation specialist) and Karen. AND, we will have a contractor come to provide a "ballpark estimate" on the upgrades we would like to do. (Probably I will have to trim my wish list!) Then, we will see about making an offer.
Why make this change - especially so soon after making the move from cruising on water to cruising on land???
The prices are right for buying; we are feeling tired from the (full time) wandering life and wishing for a stopping place for about 6 months a year; we'd like more space for ourselves (for hobbies, entertaining, cooking, privacy, storage, and more); we want a place that our adult children can come to and be comfortable staying; and a place that other family, and close friends can visit. Ray wants a garage for many reasons! This area of Florida provides a lot of benefits: great friends that we trully enjoy; all kinds of social and cultural activities year round; the beaches of Anna Maria Island; great (flat) biking and walking; weather that is great (most of the time); many kayaking opportunities; a UU church that is available (when we get off our butts and get there); there are good healthcare services here; convenient airports; and communities that are welcoming to newcomers because most everyone is "from away". Do these things provide a clue as to what home means?
A couple of years ago (while we were still cruising on water) I asked for ideas from family, friends and fellow cruisers on what they think of as "home". I got MANY wonderful thoughts. I am still working on the quilting project that I started planning at the time. It has become the beginnngs of a quilted jacket. I have it about 1/2 complete. However, the "reflections" regarding "HOME" are still simmering on the burner.
Mostly, home means being with Ray. There was a certain restlessness in my soul until Ray came into my life. I found a quote a while back by Emily Dickenson: "Wherever thou art - that is home." That says it!
But, home is also convenient to where our friends live. It needs to be where neighbors are friendly. Home is a retreat where we can feel safe and nuture ourselves - and sometimes family and friends. It is where we can relax, express ourselves, and stop for a while to plan and organize our lives.
I have always found myself "nesting" where I reside. Perhaps it is part of my generation that women did that? I came home from college and painted my bedroom furniture in the "antiqued" style that was popular in the 60s. I braided a couple of rugs to put in a "hope chest". (Actually, I openned up the hope chest and made use of the rugs a few years before I married Ray!)
I made my dormitory room "homey" in a variety of ways. In those days we had "room inspections" and we had to keep the room clean! I made my own curtains for the room and, at Christmastime I found a branch of an evergreen tree and decorated it with little pinecones and handmade ornaments from recycled "stuff".
When I had my first apartment I really got into nesting - and being creative about it! I suppose that this is what is appealing to me now. I love the planning and creating a homey space. Back then, I bought used furniture at yard sales, shops and auctions. In several instances, I stripped, sanded and stained it. There is a great satisfaction in taking something that is old and worn, yet serviceable, and tranforming it into something attractive! (I wish I still had some of those early pieces ... oh well.) I saw a photo recently in a magazine that reminded me of something I did in those early days. I found some logs while jeeping in the mountains. They had been cut to the size for chopping into firewood - but, they had been left behind to weather. The bark was coming off the 18"- 20" long logs and there were some wonderful colors and textures in the wood. I took a couple of them home and stripped them, cleaned them up, sealed them with polyurethane and used them as end tables. They added a rustic flavor to my place.
Ray and I made our "gypsy lives" as comfortable as possible in our small spaces. But, I think it is time to find a place to nest (as I said, for at least 6 months a year)! We think we may have found the house that will work for us.
More later!
