Home

Home can mean many things. Home may be where you sleep at night, where you feel the most comfortable, it may be where you live now, or where you are from. There's the old adage, home is where the heart is. That's definitely true for me. Home is absolutely where my husband is, since he has my heart, so right now home is in Alabama.

Home is also where I'm from, which is nearly 1500 miles away from here. It is sometimes very hard to be so far away from what is familiar, what is safe. However, it is probably the hardest to be away from the people I love. I've been down here for more than 2 years, but that doesn't seem to make it any easier. I can now go longer without that painful twinge of longing for my family and my friends, but often it's the little things that remind of them.

Sometimes the most random things remind me of home. The smell of baked potatoes remind me of my dad. A woman wearing a pair of cool earrings reminds me of my mom (she has a collection of earrings that would Imelda Marcos' shoe collection to shame). Seeing some cool new crunchy product for kids reminds me of my good friend. All of the Halloween decorations that are out remind me of my little sister. She always made Halloween fun. An adorable kitty in the neighbor's window reminds me of my aunt who LOVES cats. Watching the Big Bang Theory reminds me of my brother from another mother.

It's tough being so far away from home. I can't go to my parents house for dinner when we are almost out of food. I can't do my laundry at their house, either, though that's not as much of a problem anymore since I finally have my own washer and dryer (I really loathe the laundromat). We don't really have friends down here, so there aren't many people to hang out with, or to talk with. There is no one to have girl time with, or go for a walk with. I'm getting a lot better at being alone, but I still really don't like it.

This time of year is the hardest. It starts with my sister's birthday in the beginning of October going all the way through to my mom's birthday in March, including all of the holidays. It is very difficult to be away from my family for the holidays. This will be my third set of holidays away from them. It's not easy for my husband either, but he just hides it better.

Alright, enough of me feeling sorry for myself. Sometimes it helps to just let it all out. I feel better now. Homesickness sucks.

~Mac