friday five: home sweet home

At RevGals Songbird writes: I've got home on my mind: what it feels like, how we make it, what we carry from the past and how we separate other people's leftovers from objects that really reflect our identity. My family has had one home for the past 13 years, the longest I've ever lived anywhere. As the time when all the children are gone comes closer, I wonder where my next home will be?
So here are five questions about home.

1) Where was your first home?

The first home of my childhood was in Newington, Connecticut, a suburb of Hartford. It was a small, three bedroom house with one bathroom, but it's packed with lots of memories inside and out: our cat having kittens in my closet, dinner at the picnic table on the brick patio, a treehouse in the apple tree, drawers in the upstairs bedroom built into the wall, a tree that bloomed at my birthday, playing in the crawlspace in the eaves, invading our parents' bedroom and playing "airplane," balancing in the air on their feet, obstacle courses set up for birthday parties, baking cookies, and so much more. Wish I was home to upload a picture of that house!

2) Do you ever dream about places you used to live?

If you mean dream while sleeping, then the answer is yes. I dream occasionally about the first house of my childhood (see above), but I have dreamt with some frequency about the first house I owned. I suppose there are lots of reasons for that! If you mean daydream, then the answer is also yes. I remember with deep affection and some longing my first home in Tennessee. It had a great yard for the dogs, for one thing, but it had other things to commend it, and I miss it.  

3) If you could bring back one person from your past to sit at your dinner table, who would you choose?

Great question! After some thought I think I'll say my late friend, Kathy. She died five and a half years ago, and I thought at the time of her death that we had resolved some tensions in our relationship. Some things that have transpired since her death--or more accurately, haven't transpired--lead me to believe that full reconciliation did not take place. I carry a lingering sadness about that, and I would like an opportunity to do whatever I can to correct that.

4) What's your favorite room in your current living space?

I don't have a favorite room in my home at the moment. When I finally repaint the living room and make some modest changes there, it will probably be that space. It's where my husband and I hang out, where we relax, and where I am able to read and do hand-sewing. At the moment the room is chaos. I guess I do have a favorite room!

5) Is there an object or an item where you live now that represents home? If not, can you think of one from your childhood?

Hands down, the fireplace and mantel (see above!).I associate it with Christmas, birthdays, and family or friends gathered around it. It's a place of community and celebration, warmth and comfort. The common thread of what makes it special to me is that it is a place of gathering with people I love.