Home can mean so many things. It can be the people you find comfort in, the smells of your childhood, the touch of a soft hand, or the dining room table you grew up eating at.
Home for many people, is the place where they are most comfortable, the light in the dark and the comfort in the unfamiliar. It’s a person, it’s nature and it’s warmth.
For me, home was always where I grew up. The feeling of my mother’s arms, the smell of warm milk and sugar, and the small red roses painted on the walls of my childhood bedroom.
As I grow, so do my values, ideals, and thoughts. So does my home
I didn’t know when choosing the university I would attend that it would soon become a home to me. The first time I went back to California for Spring break, I was relieved to be back with the familiar smells and feelings of my home. When the week was over and I headed back to Lawrence, I remember calling my mom when I landed and had made it back to my residence hall saying, “hey mom, I’m home.”
KU quickly become a place of familiarity for me. A safe haven where I felt supported and encouraged, to be successful and creative. Since then, I have realized when I go back to California; I am constantly encountering things that remind me of Lawrence and vice versa. This spring break, I saw a few iconic objects that often remind me of my college town.
The first were the bright flowers at the Sacramento Midtown Farmer’s Market. They reminded me of the bright colors growing around the buildings on campus.
The second was an iced coffee from my favorite coffee shop in Sacramento, Temple Coffee. I like to drink it with a splash of almond milk, just how I like the Cold Brew from my favorite coffee shop in Lawrence, Alchemy.
The parking garages all over downtown Sacramento usually bring me back to Wescoe, and the obscure architecture of the most central building on Jayhawk Blv.
These are just a few examples of my two homes emerging. I am constantly finding myself living in a memory of my most familiar places, being brought back by senses so strong and so vivid. This spring break, I realized that I am thankful to have such fond memories of the city that I grew in, and the town that shaped me.