Home Is Wherever My Heart Is

 I grew up here.

This was my view every morning, every afternoon, and every evening. Pure bliss.

This is where I always expected to stay. This is the kind of place where I always thought I’d live from the time I was a small child. My dream from childhood was to grow up, get married, and raise my family out in the country, and love life together in the country, like my mama did with us. Contrast that with the reality of my adult life, where our little family has lived in suburban and semi-rural neighborhoods during the 6 1/2 years since we got married and started our family.

WHAT HOME NOW IS AND ALWAYS WILL BE…

But since somewhere that feels like “home”, in that sense, is not where I live now, and it won’t be for some time, I have a better idea.

I always thought of “home” as being a place whenever I thought of the old phrase, “Home is where the heart is.” But now my focus has changed from a place… to person, or more specifically, the company of people, rather. In other words… Family.

My family.

They are “my heart”. My home is wherever they are. My Father in heaven and my Savior are also with me always. So wherever I am and wherever they all are with me, that’s home. That always has been home. And I have always known it.

I just need a little reminding sometimes.

Wherever little fingerprints grace my windows…

Wherever there is the wonderment of little minds telling me about their imaginative adventures at play…

Wherever I see big smiles…

Or siblings playing together…

Wherever there are joyful sounds or big smiles radiating from small faces…

(Fast forward a few years…)

Wherever there are little eyes that look up at me and without a word they seem to say, “Hold me again, Mama,”…

Wherever there is the footprint map of small adventures of small feet tracked in with them from playing outside… (This little man is my dirt-lover.)

Wherever there are the reminders from the mouths of babes to slow down and enjoy the little things… (That’s this girl right here. Always reminding me to enjoy life. Truly, wisdom from the mouths of babes.)

Wherever there are tears that need drying, or the comfort of Mama’s hugs to be given…

Wherever this guy is… *giggle* *snort*

I am home. Even if I forget, even if I feel homesick for that place I long for in my heart, even if I need reminding of it every now and again. This is what home really is.