Home

Home – There is more to this word than meets the eye. The general concept of home is the house you grew up in. Then you move to another place for studies or for work. The place you reside there becomes your new home. For me, the word home means more than just a place of residence. It is a feeling of safety and security; of solace and peace. I am always in search of that feeling called home.

I live in Singapore for most part of the year. All my belongings and material comforts are available there. But whenever life overwhelms me with chores and tasks and climatic conditions and things around me; whenever I feel lost, I fly down to my three bedroom apartment in Guwahati, Assam (India). This is a super minimalistic abode that has only the most important things needed for normal basic living. This house soothes my nerves and gives me time to be myself – alone. This minimalistic house becomes my ‘home’.

When some people overwhelm me and I want to get away from it all, I book myself in a hill-side cottage for a week. I carry my laptop and my thoughts and I write. For those seven days, I eat my favourite things in the room service menu and I write my heart out. For those seven days, writing becomes my home.

It is a blessing of God that I have a super understanding partner who always lets me be. He appreciates my wild spirit and never restricts me in pursuing my dreams. I travel solo most of the times and ‘am hardly home. In my absence, he even takes care of my garden in Singapore despite his busy work schedule. When I get hurt by my friends and near and dear ones, I always want to be with him, I seek him. He knows me better than I know myself. He knows what to say to me and how to make me alright. In such times, he is my home.

When complicated grown-ups around me tire me out, I visit my niece. She is a bundle of energy (touchwood!). She makes me take part in her plays and dances. Her endless chatter about her pre-school friends and her teachers; her issues inside her Barbie doll house make me forget everything in the world. For those refreshing moments, my niece gives me the feeling of being home.

For me, home is not a place, it’s a feeling. And I think it’s time for me to go home.