There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.
No Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore.
Although Bowling Green’s landscape may be as equally flat as the plains of The Sunflower State, don’t be fooled.
You are, without a doubt, in northwest Ohio, as evident by the 85 degree weather in October.
Whether you consider Bowling Green your new home, a second home, a home-away-from-home, or perhaps just a reminder of how much you miss home, one thing is certain.
It can never fully replace where you grew up.
Home is where the heart is, after all.
Home may be a tiny word, yet its meaning goes beyond what any amount of words can describe.
A home is so much more than the physical structure in which you live.
Four walls and a roof alone do not make up a home. Rather, what is contained within the walls – the memories, the tears, the stories, and the laughter shared with family and friends – these are the elements that compose a home.
Home is an environment where you feel comfortable and content. It may be the place where you were born, or it can also be the place you’ve grown to love.
A home knows no limitations concerning size or shape. Home is where memories of the past come flooding back to you. It is that one place where you belong. Home is not where you life, but where you are truly alive.
Believe it or not, our homes play a large part in shaping who we are today. So in a sense, we carry our homes with us wherever we go, locked within our hearts and memories.
According to Maya Angelou, “You can never go home again, but the truth is you can never leave home, so it’s all right.”
You’ve got to admit, she has a point.
That being said, many of you will be heading home for fall break this weekend.
And for some of you, this may be your first trip home since the beginning of the year.
For most, home offers time to relax in the midst of a hectic semester. It also allows time to visit with family and reunite with old friends.
To those of you coping with the transition to college life, I offer this advice.
While you are home, you may realize that your relationships with family and friends have changed slightly.
This is due to the fact that, whether you realize it or not, you have changed since arriving at the University in late August.
This change could be as simple as picking up your roommate’s favorite phrase or mannerisms.
But regardless of the degree of change, being in a new environment and around different people has affected you in some way.
Now, this is not necessarily a negative thing.
Change is essential to life. In fact, many changes can be positive.
My point is, you have changed and so have your friends. As a result, your friendships may not be exactly the same.
In some cases they will be. If you don’t notice any changes, just wait until the holidays.
Either way, as Angelou suggests, once you leave home and become independent, home will forever be different.
At the same time however, Angelou offers hope. Although home will never be the same, it will always be the same in your heart.
With my advice out of the way, I hope you all have a safe and enjoyable trip home.
And for those of you not heading home until Thanksgiving, when you do arrive back, be sure to cherish your time spent with family and friends – and your little dog too.
‘#160;
Send comments to Taylor at [email protected]
‘#160;