This month on the #TravelLinkup, we’re talking all about Home. Where do you make yours? What makes it for you? Do you have one, or many? Have you ever visited somewhere and thought – I could live here!? We’d love to hear from you – link up using the widget below!
Before the events of last Friday (Brexit, y’all) I thought I knew exactly what I would write for this post. Sure, it wouldn’t quite be a love letter to London, or even to My Two Cities, but it might have had the same themes.
This week, however, I’m shaken. England is the country I make my home in, Wales the country I trace my heritage to. Yet both surprised me, appearing (to my mind) to reject an open outlook in favour of a retreat away from the world. The intention of this post is not to ignite debate on the referendum, but rather a reflection on what I value in my home… wherever that may be.
In Maori, the language of New Zealand’s native people, there is a proverb: He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata. Translated, it asks: “What is the most important thing? It is people, it is people, it is people.” I couldn’t agree more.
Whether it’s my family, my closest friends, new kindred spirits, or friendly locals, people are what makes a home for me. A place could have the most stunning beaches, most delicious food, or most gorgeous landscapes… but if there’s no-one to share it with, what would be the point? As I say, that doesn’t have to be people I already know, but I want it to be people that I feel a common spirit with – an open outlook, an accepting demeanor, a curious mind, a happy spirit. I need it to feel like a creative, forward-looking, exploratory environment, one that supports all its people and their endeavours.
Please don’t get me wrong – I’m definitely not saying the UK doesn’t have this, nor that New Zealand ticks all the boxes. It is simply that the events of the last week have made me think a little more about what I value in my home. What is it for you?
