Oh How I Miss Thee...

So the Olympics have started and with it a flood of memories and homesickness that I did not anticipate at all. I called Vancouver home for 8 years and really loved it! I am pretty sure that Mr.J is deaf in the left ear by now, because I've been shouting "I've been there!" at him since the opening ceremonies started. But I digress.

When I left Vancouver it was time to go, but now that I reflect on it, I think I probably could have taken advantage of what it had to offer a little more. But, that was then...

All this of course got me thinking about the phenomenon of how past experiences stay with you and affect what you do today, and how in an anticipation and excitement of moving to a new place, homesickness and nostalgia can very easily be a very nasty surprise. C.S. Lewis once wrote "You cannot take all luggage with you on all journeys." Valid point indeed, but a few 100 ton suitcases simply can't be left behind.

Since the concern of this blog is to speak about living somewhere from where you are not, the concept of homesickness is a real concern, or at least should be considered by those who are thinking about a move away from home....no matter how ready you are to go. It often starts as a little twinge of discomfort as you settle in in the evening after a terribly exciting day of new discoveries in the ever so exciting new place. It manifests itself as a sense of being tired, as though so much new and excitement is making you weary. You start to long for just a moment of the old routine. This is very much compounded if you do not happen to have your stuff with you and are in temporary accommodations. I think this sensation was best described by my cat, who after a long trip here moped about the Beige Palace (as we affectionately called the hole we stayed in for nearly 3 months before we got our own place), for weeks. She ended up having her own little routine, which after some time became just as comfortable as the one she had before, yet something just wasn't right. When we finally moved into our apartment and the movers started bringing our furniture in, the visible joy on her furry little face was just priceless! "It smells like me!" Her favourite chair was back! That little itty bittty part of the familiar was back.

There is something incredibly important to be learned from this story, and that is that no matter how ready one may be for a new adventure in life, it is always wise to bring a little something of your old life with you. This will be your anchor in the deep sea of everything new....because no matter how many things are the same as the place you came from, it will all be coloured with a different tint.

I love moving to new places. It makes me feel like life is not so boring. But deep down inside, I think I always long for that one place that is home...the way that Grandma always made me feel. How things had their spot and stayed there for 57 years. I can't say that I have found that place for myself yet, but there are a few things that I always have with me that make wherever I hang my hat the old and familiar just for a moment.