Story
I sat at the back of Jason’s car as we cruised past the beautiful Vancouver scenery. I recalled the many times I laughed at the inefficiency and slow paced style of this city. It was always something that annoyed me since I first arrived. Looking back, I couldn’t keep count of the times I’ve said:
“I could never live here…”
Yet, I feel strongly attached.
I look down at my watch and we’re pretty early. My flight wasn’t leaving for another 3 hours. We decided to have one last meal with our group of friends before I left. The tone of dinner was nostalgic and sentimental, most of us realized it would be a LONG while until we will all be sitting together and having a meal. I think we all realized it was something we took for granted. My friends made the rough parts of Vancouver easier to handle and the good parts even better. My friends here became my second family, my home away from home.
As I waited at the gate by myself, it felt bitter sweet to finally go back to see my parents. It has been over four year since I last saw them. For the first time, I felt anxious about going back “home”.
I wonder if I’ll experience reverse culture shock?
Commentary and thoughts
I had difficulty writing this blog assignment!
This assignment evoked a lot of feelings and reflections as to what I consider home. Over the past few days, my mind had numerous ideas about the values and stories that connect myself to my home. Despite the abundance of ideas, I failed to solidify anything into writing on my blog. I tried several times to describe my sense of home but I found myself deleting what I wrote and starting from scratch.
I realized my difficulty answering this question stems from the fact that I’m about to leave my home. I have 15 days remaining in Vancouver before I leave back to Hong Kong (where I went to high school and spent the majority of my life). Vancouver became part of my life. Another home. My mind was / is flustered by the bitter-sweet feelings of having to leave one home for another. I channelled some of those feelings into my story and hoped to convey the idea that two entirely different cities can both be your home. I guess my sense of home doesn’t come from the beauty or lifestyle that accompanies a city (I’d say those are luxuries). I find myself at home when I have people who understand me, and when I have people to share beautiful moments with.
“Where we love is home, home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.”
– Oliver Wendell Holmes
“Home is not where you live but where they understand you”
– Christian Morgenstern
References
““Where we love is home,Home that the feet may leave,but not our hearts.”.” Goodreads. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 June 2014. <http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/301013-where-we-love-is-home-home-that-the-feet-may>. Web
“Home is not where you live but where they understand you.” Goodreads. N.p., n.d. Web. 12June 2014. <http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/161531-home-is-not-where-you-live-but-where-they-understand>. Web
Hey Leo,
I really enjoyed this post! I was surprised when you said you had difficulty writing it since it was so powerful and well written. I feel like your story really captures an essential part of the university experience. I know I definitely harbor very similar feelings when I leave Vancouver and head back home to see my parents. Your protagonist has a strong connection to Vancouver since its where he probably matured to become an adult and went through serious life changes, and yet “[he] could never live here.” But also in addition to that feeling, he feels nervous about returning home. It’s as if he is in a distant place and confused about where his home actually is, where does he feel the most comfort and security to say that he is home – if it’s not Vancouver, and not his hometown, then he’s probably feeling very lost. I think your story had an interesting undertone of a lost feeling which I really appreciated. It’s very hard to capture such a complex feeling, and I think you did a great job.
A beautiful story that captures the simplicity of the tension between imagination and reality nicely: home is a place we imagine; how we feel about home is real. 🙂 thank you
A wonderful story – very powerful! Are you “back’ home now? Your stories says 15 days? What your story provokes for me is a remarkably strong sense of being in-between; you know, neither here nor there, yet a in both places. I think your story really captures a sense of transition and I keep wondering what your flight between your two homes was like for you? You could probably write a really good story about your reflections between you two homes. Yes, an excellent story, and I very much appreciated you post-story comments as well. Especially your ending:
“I find myself at home when I have people who understand me, and when I have people to share beautiful moments with.”
I have read a lot of stories about what home means to a lot of people, and the common ground I find most often is that home means ‘belonging’ – a place where you belong. Now what is interesting about this is that ‘belonging’ is relational. So, while a sense of home is so often expressed with intensely personal feelings and memories, these feelings rely on being accepted, on being welcomed, on other people’s sense of who you are and why you belong. Just something to think about.