After reading many classmates stories about home I noticed that despite the large differences in the stories themselves there are many common underlying themes.  Here is a list of some of the themes I noticed recurring often:

• Home was associated with specific places
  • childhood homes or grandparents cottages all brought up feelings of home
  • where people actually lived did not necessarily feel like home to them, instead it might have been where they spent there summers
• Home was associated with family (or specific groups of people)
  • family gathers and traditions were valued highly
  • special celebrations such as birthdays and traditional holidays are cherished
• Home was associated with Food
  • food brought people together
  • sharing meals with friends or family was associated with feelings of home
  • traditional foods associated with holidays

Everyone’s stories were filled with beautiful memories and feelings for home.  They were lovely to read and reminded me of many of my own memories of home growing up.  Despite coming from all over the world and experiencing life so differently it is amazing how strong everyone’s sense of home is and how we share many similar experiences.