2025/David-

“Make yourself at home.” That’s probably the first thing you think of when you or someone visits another’s home. Now, what do you define as a home? Some people believe it’s a property, some think of the land, and others think its sentimental worth. Some people don’t believe that they have a home at all. My home is both all and none of these examples. My home is where I am.

“Home is where thou art.” This quote from Emily Dickinson says that our home is where we are. I think this is a very good quote because some people move several times in their lives. Some people might be unlucky enough to lose their house or may not even have a house. My house has also been the house of others. I have never been in the same place for a long time. I was only a few months old when I first moved overseas for my dad’s orders. Since then, I have wondered where my home is.

I used to think that your home is just a house. A place to live even. After moving so much, I thought that I had no home. That I was just tumbleweed in the desert. Moving here to Korea however, I realized that it was going to be the last time I moved in my childhood. I wanted to enjoy Korea as much as I could because, who in the US can say they lived in Korea. The only issue I had when I first moved was “What is my home?”

My hometown in Texas is very small. Stereotypical small, countryside town. Everyone knows each other and has plenty of backroads to joyride a quad bike all day. I was born there, my parents were born there, and most of my family have lived there for most (if not all) their lives. I used to think that this town was my home. It was the only place that was always there. It was the only place we were able to go and visit often. However, moving here to Korea made it to where we cannot easily visit there anymore. Then I thought. What was a place that never left my side?

I always wondered until one day I thought outside the box. “The place that never leaves my side is the place that is near my side.” As a military child, I moved a lot more than most people. The word “Home” to people means a place where they are welcomed. A place where they live. Maybe even where they work. The only issue is that you can't have multiple homes. It's like saying you can’t have multiple things you love. You can love as many things as you want, but at the end of the day you still hold one above the others. That is why my home isn't a house or a town. It is the place around me, where I am, and myself. “Home is where thou art.”