Tell Us About . . . Hometowns: People and Places To Love

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How interesting that the theme for this month is hometowns, when I recently went to visit my original hometown. I started thinking about what makes a place a home town, if it's possible to have more than one, and how much that place can affect or define someone.

Most people consider the place where they grew up to be their hometown. The place where they spent the majority of their childhood and teen years. My hometown, by that definition, is Calgary, Alberta. That's where I was born, and where I grew up and lived until my mid-twenties. I had temporary addresses in Manitoba and Ontario for about a year, but Calgary was clearly my home. 

Sometimes we don't appreciate our hometown until we don't live there any more and we start to realize what we miss about it. I missed my family and my friends when I moved away, but it took a little longer to miss the surroundings. When I was able to return home for visits, I was struck by things that I wouldn't necessarily have expected. The sky is bigger and there is more horizon in Alberta than in New Jersey or Maryland or Ohio. I can't explain that, but I have observed it. Being able to see the mountains off to the west. And being able to visit the mountains pretty much any time you want. I really miss that!

There's something that happens to you when you come back to your hometown. ~Joseph Dougherty

Driving by the house I grew up in, the schools I attended, the church we attended, and various buildings and landmarks was a fun trip down memory lane, and while all of those places were part of my hometown experience, I don't miss them in the same way. The house was sold a couple decades ago, the schools look the same but I don't have any connection any more, and the congregation I was part of changed buildings and names and I hardly know anyone; and the building was sold to a different congregation. There are many memories attached to the places, so it's nostalgic to drive around the neighborhoods and remember when we lived and worked and played there. But I can't say that I long for those days, or wish we could move back. I desperately wish we weren't so far away from my family and the good friends that we reconnected with, and I also wish it was easier to go visit the mountains more often, but I don't wish to move back.

Many years ago my hometown shifted to our community in Maryland. We lived there for twenty-five years and raised our family there. We had a house that we'd made truly ours over those years. We built deep friendships in the homeschool community and in the church where we very involved. The roots had gone pretty deep over those years, and it was home. In a very real sense, it is still home, because our house is still there and our adult kids still live in the house. When we moved to Ohio, I knew I would desperately miss the kids and granddaughter, and would miss all my friends. And I sure did. I miss my house too. I miss the homeschool co-op where I taught, and I miss being involved in lots of social things at church, and I miss the drive through the country to get to town. 

Towns change; they grow or diminish, but hometowns remain as we left them. ~Jayne Anne Phillips

I don't know how long it will take for me to really feel like Columbus is my hometown. In theory, it already is, because it's our address and we're trying to put down some roots here. We're involved in church, we have jobs we like, and I'm part of a chorus that gives me a sense of belonging. We're starting to make friends. We enjoy exploring the area and getting to know the parks and restaurants and entertainment. We love being close to our oldest son and his family. But there's something that still feels temporary, and maybe it's just because we're renting instead of buying. This is home but it's not exactly HOME yet. 

It's becoming home, and becoming a hometown. And I think it's okay to just add another hometown. I don't have to give up my hometown connections to Calgary or to Maryland in order to establish a hometown connection here. My kids won't have an emotional connection to this place because they didn't grow up here, but hopefully we can make some good memories when they come to visit, and my grandchildren will have lots of good memories of going to Nonny and Poppy's house. 

Hometown looks a little different now than what I pictured just a couple of years ago. And that's going to have to be okay.

Where we love is home - home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts. ~Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.

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Tell Us About . . . is a monthly opportunity for bloggers to showcase their creativity. Each month one of the co-hosts will choose the word to focus on. On the third Thursday of every month we'll respond to the prompt "Tell Us About ---" which could be absolutely anything. And how we respond is also wide open. It could be a blog post with our opinions or reminscences; a poem, photos, a short story or whatever takes your fancy―it could even be a mix of all these! This month's theme is "Home Towns" and our hostess is Marsha In The Middle.

This post is linked at Tell Us About Hometowns.

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