Home

Christmas has come and gone already, and 2013 is just beginning, and I find myself thinking, “now how’d that happen?!”  At the same time, I’ve come to the realization that while 2012 brought quite a few changes (moving to the states, starting college, etc.), life becoming more “normal” and I am really starting to feel like I’m more at home in the USA.  You might be thinking, “Wow, that was kind of sudden,” but it’s something I’ve been building up to… let me explain.

My dad came to visit me for the week over Christmas since I made the decision not to go back to Guate.  It was awesome having him around and it was a great time for us to catch up a little and just spend time together, but that’s beside the point.  Anyways, while he was visiting, I found myself in the opposite role of what I had been used to for the past 4 months… I was the “experienced,” US tour guide rather than the shell-shocked teenager from Guate!  Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing wrong with being a tour guide, but after spending several months just trying to figure out where you are and not be completely overwhelmed by grocery stores, it’s kinda nice to be the “local”!! 

As I was taking my dad around to different places and showing him what my life is now like, it really did hit me how much the US has become home.  At the same time, in my conversations with my dad, I realized that Guatemala is still very much of my home and I think it always will be.  So then I started wondering, now how’s that work?  How can I feel at home in the US, but also still know that Guate is part of my home?

That’s when I came to the realization that it’s OK to have two homes!  I looked “home” up in the dictionary and here’s what I came up with…

"The place in which one's domestic affections are centered."

Well, when you put it that way, I guess I am at home in two different places!  My family and what I have known for the past few years is in Guate, but my current life and “affections” are here in the US.  While my body might be one place, my heart can still be in two, and the truth is, that’s perfectly OK!! 

So if you ask me if the US feels like home yet, I can honestly answer yes.  If you ask me if I still consider Guate home, I will again honestly answer yes.  And if you ask me if I’m ok with that, I can now say, “you bet I am!”  J  

A "piece" of Guatemala home in my US home.  :)