Home

There's no place like home.

Between college and serving in the military, having a steady home has felt like a luxury. It seemed like I had to change my dwelling every year. Thanks to some great advice from my father, I put aside quite a bit of my money to own a little home in Indiana. Unfortunately, I only stayed in my home about two weeks twice a year.

My residence in Indiana housed all of my nice stuff. While in the Army and in college, I merely only possessed items that I would be able to easily part. Fortunately, that still didn't mean I couldn't have nice things. I was surprised to learn just how nice I could make my residences look as well as enjoy a very comfortable lifestyle using gourmet utensils and even high-end electronics. Regardless, I still kept most of prized possessions in my actual home. No matter how nice I made my rooms in college and in the Army, they still lacked the sentimentality that my "true" home possessed.

Me at the Grand Canyon. See, I get around.

Beyond my actual residence itself, I grew to appreciate my environment and perhaps the culture of Indiana as well. I indeed loved Washington. I still have some really good friends there, and I did have a great time exploring Washington from Seattle to Leavenworth. I even explored a good portion of Oregon - a state I truly fell in love with. Both states were very fun, very beautiful, and there was just so much to see; however, they lacked something. When the Army stationed me in Fort Bliss, I experienced the same dilemma. I had so much fun exploring West Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona; yet, there was still something inexplicably missing.

I'll be the first to admit that I don't know what would necessarily draw someone from the Pacific Northwest or the Southwest to Indiana. While I certainly enjoyed visiting those places, I just couldn't call any of those places home. Maybe it's my past in Indiana. Maybe it's just some intrinsic property about Indiana that I can't quite describe. There is a beauty with the sunsets, the fields, and even the air in Indiana that I wouldn't trade for anything. I don't see as many stars in the sky or as colorful sunsets like in the Southwest, but there is still something very special with what stars I am able to see and how the colors reflect off of the clouds on an Indiana sunset. There certainly isn't as much to do in Indiana as there was in Washington, but I enjoy what I can do in Indiana just as much. Perhaps that just makes having fun in Indiana just that much special. Still, as silly as I may sound, I am being completely serious.

Ironically, when I was younger, I couldn't wait to leave where I grew up. I envisioned a dream that took me away from my home. I'm sure many of you who read this blog post probably have had similar feelings for where you call home even if it is not Indiana. Now as I've grown older, I've envisioned a new dream that keeps me home. Even though I struggle to make my dream into reality, I still feel it is worth it as long as I can call home "home".