A Lighthouse
A Beacon of Safety, a Shelter from Storms
I like to compare my home to a lighthouse. A place that is steadfast, offering shelter from storms and providing the guiding light to bring the ships in from sea. Practically speaking, my house does protect me from storms (although there was a time when water and earthworms made their way inside each time it rained heavily) but, ideally, home is a mental and emotional haven as well.
I hope that my children, when they get older and venture out on their own, will feel that this is a place they can return to in good times and in bad.
My parents’ house feels this way. There was a time in my life that led me back to them quite suddenly and unexpectedly and they welcomed me and my children with open arms. They made a place for us and their home became ours, too. Their home was a safe place for us when we needed it most. It became a place where, after a long time, I began to feel like myself again.
Everyone deserves a place like this. Where they know, without a doubt, that no matter what is going on in their life they can step over the threshold of that place, with those people, and be cared for and loved and that some of their burden will become lighter.
If you are outside of your home on a regular basis, whether it’s for work, school, church, social gatherings or any other task bringing you out into the world, you’ll see and hear all sorts of crazy things all the time. Some more pleasant than others. An ideal home, to me, is a place where one can step inside, shut the door, and be in a space both mental and physical that is a retreat from the chaos of the world.
Here is an aspect of home that has almost nothing to do with the house itself but is entirely determined by the people who live there and the culture they create. At the heart of this lies security—emotional security to be specific—and without this security one simply cannot have peace in their home. A physical home is important but it’s the people, not the place, who foster the emotional security that invites true peace and rest.