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21 Jan 10 Home is not a place, it’s a state of mind
“Papa was a rolling stone, where ever he laid his hat was home”
A moment ago I was struck by a moment of home sickness and I thought to myself: “In less than 24 hours, I’ll be back home”. As I’m writing this, I am in a hotel room in Hotel Esturion, Puerto Iguazu, northern Argentina. In 24 hours time I’ll be back in Buenos Aires (this will likely be posted after that time).
Funny that, I have no ties, legal, family or otherwise to Buenos Aires. It just happens to be my “home” until some time when I decide to leave before my tourist visa expires.
What I have learned over the last few years, and a concept that has been cemented in my mind from this trip is that “home” is not a place to me, it is a state of mind.
My wants are quite simple: give me a place with a bed, toilette, shower, fridge and cooking facilities, an internet connection and good work area and I’m set. Oh, and I don’t want to be on the constant look out for a maid who might pop in at any given time, hence my discomfort with hotels. I like having my door locked and knowing with relative certainty that no one else but me can get in. But as far as required “home comforts”, that’s about all I need.
Another thing about the state of mind of “home” to me is to not be rushed: I doubt I could feel “at home” in a place I was only staying in for a couple of days or a few weeks. But if I know I have a month or more, I’ll make it my home.
Furthermore, “home” is where you want to be, not where you have to be. Some years back, I was living in places I did not want to be, I was semi nomadic, and never really felt home. I’ve come to realize that this had more to do with the fact that I had to be there out of necessity rather than choice. I was in places I did not want to be in, hence I never felt truly at home. My problem was never the lack of permanence, it was the forced nature of the location.
For the time being, I’m considering Buenos Aires to be my home more so than my over-mortgaged flat in London. Yes, I might have most of my worldly possessions in the latter, but they are of less value to me right now than the experiences I have had in my temporarily adopted “home” of Buenos Aires. Come March, I’m sure my London flat will be “home” once again until my next adventure, after all, it’s just a state of mind.
