Why Home Matters – A Place to Land, to Arrive, to Belong. *(2 of 3)

Oct 28

We all carry stories, and what home means to us — and what it hasn’t always been. In this first reflection, I share the beginnings of my own relationship to home. It didn’t start with walls. It started with a deep longing to belong, to open up, and arrive. If you’ve ever felt unrooted, I hope you find resonance here.

I’ve moved often, as a child and as an adult, navigating new houses, new schools, new countries, and new jobs.

It shaped me in ways I wouldn’t comprehend until much later. I learned quickly how to adapt, to observe, to perform and be what was expected of me. Each new space brought a new lesson in conformity. I hadn’t learned what it meant to settle. To ground myself in softness. To feel safe. To trust enough to stay.

I hadn’t learned what it meant to settle. To ground myself in softness.

Home, for a long time, was a concept I didn’t have access to. Not emotionally. Not physically. It was something I watched other people have — a place that seemed to hold space, a sense of community for them. There was no jealousy. I was busy being on the move, in transition, and I embraced this sense of wonder, and adventure. It was my identity.

The turning point came when we had our son. My husband and I chose to move closer to family, and stay in one place for a while. Looking back now, it wasn’t just the baby boy—it was also me who needed a place to land. My mind, body, and soul felt conflicted at first, -the newness of settling needed time for processing, to integrate. Being in one place meant growing roots, forming connections, allowing yourself to belong. To allow this to happen, I needed to open up. It was a complex journey, especially when the only safety I knew was keeping my heart closed and protected.

Being in one place meant growing roots, forming connections, allowing yourself to belong.

It was an undoing. A process that took time, even years. But I started letting this stillness in. I chose to ground myself, and it opened my eyes to the importance of a home. Not just in the literal sense of four walls and a bed, but as in a safe haven, and a feeling of being fully yourself.