Home

Each day of my life, there is one place that represents happiness to me and that is home.  As I think about this, I can’t help but ponder what represents “home” to me.  I was born and raised on the east coast and home for many years was where I spent so many years with my family.  But then I went out on my own and home became a number of different locations.  Each was special and represented the same concept to me.  Home was where you went at the end of the day and where you sought refuge whether alone or with another person.  But now, it means so much more to me.

 

When I moved to California, I knew that I was “home”.  I had visited for a week with a friend and knew within 48 hours that this was where I felt I needed and wanted to be.  After the visit, I packed up my worldly goods within 6 months and life has never been the same.  And despite the fact that I did make one move away after my initial landing here, it didn’t take long for me to return.

 

Once I returned here, Kirk and I got married.  We don’t own a home here.  We rent an apartment.  Yet it really doesn’t matter.  Our home is perfect because we have fun here.  Every day is special in some way.  It is safe and it is full of love.  No one has to do or be anything other than exactly who we are and we appreciate each other for our individuality.   We don’t have to look outside of our home for places to go or things to do or something to occupy our time.  We have everything right here where we are.

 

I think an important aspect of this is also the location of our home.  I remember all of the cold and dreary winters.  I remember the weekends when you wanted to do something special but couldn’t count on the weather cooperating.  Even in the middle of the summer, it might be chilly enough to need a sweater and the water was too cold to go swimming.  This just doesn’t work for me.

 

The exciting thing is to wake up to sunshine just about every day of my life.  To me, every day is automatically great when you can start it in southern California.  I don’t mind getting ready and going to work as I don’t have to pile on a ton of clothes and go outdoors into a big freeze.  That freedom alone means so much to me.  Everyone said that I would miss the change of seasons but boy, were they wrong.  Not only don’t I miss them but the great thing is that you can head in just about any direction and find what you want within two hours.  If I want snow and skiing in the winter, it is readily available.  If I want heat in the summer, the desert is nearby.  And the immediate surroundings also provide a spring and fall if one is looking for those changes as well.

 

I guess for me, I have the best that the world has to offer.  I am in the exactly perfect place for me.  I have nearly perfect surroundings both outside and inside.  When you are fortunate enough to have created such a perfect situation for yourself, you find that there just isn’t much of anything that gets you down or any situation that you can’t conquer.  Now that is how I find that you can create happiness in your life when you create the best surroundings for yourself.