Home: where you grow

Home

While a home carries a strong emotional connotation and sense of personal connection, a house is emotionally neutral. It provides a temporary residency for which a family may choose to occupy. A place of tranquility for some, while others feel overwhelmed by the presence of so many others. However a home is where your heart is. It can be a place or feeling in which you receive comfort. A lot of times that security comes from the relationships you make with those around you. The word 'home' holds a substantial amount of significance towards a persons mindset and whereabouts. In Marilynn Robinsons novel Home, we are shown the value of investing time and effort into creating a stable home especially through relationships because those that don't, drift and become unsure of their identity.

The well written novel Home, by Marilynn Robinson, gives a glimpse into what a family unit looks like in Iowa. There are 8 children and two adults that make up the Boughton family. Almost all the children have left to create their own families in a stable dwelling, while two of the eight find themselves back home. It is a sequel to the book Gilead, describing a similar atmosphere and home from a different perspective. The characters morals and attitudes first developed through childhood experiences. It is these occurrences that created the nature of who they became as adults. This all developed from their individual experiences with home and how it shaped their mindsets.

Glory Boughton grew up in a strong, family oriented atmosphere that taught structure and accountability. Having been the youngest of seven other siblings, she often times felt left out and misplaced. This caused a lot of restlessness within her. She desired to be out on her own, making a life for herself, and pursuing a career in teaching. Even with these aspirations her strong, moral character keeps her firmly rooted at home. It is shown in the book that her forgiving nature is a strong contributor to her families ability to weather the hard times together. While growing up, if she had invested more time into her 'home', she might have felt more secure in who she was rather than allowing others to dictate who she is. This all begins with where home is because that determines where your heart is.

Home is a place for which a person should feel the most safe and secure. Glory later realized this to be true when she returned to her dying father in Iowa. Even as life passed her by, the roots she had formed as a child brought her back to Gilead. She felt a sense of loyalty to the house she grew up in and decided to stay even when others constantly left. Her home and identity were first formed in the geographical location that imprinted on her mindset and shaped her personality. She recalls throughout the book the countless times her family spent together while reading the Bible and playing several games of checkers. She even recalls the smell of her mothers cooking being able to calm any abrupt situation. These significant memories hold a strong place in her heart as well as a connection to her family. Initially they define where her home is at.

While occupying a certain location, a connection starts to form. Whether from the memories made or the facilities it offers, this creates roots. A home is designed to be a stable place of living or sense of clarity that helps you unwind. It plays a major role into the development of individuals character along with how they interact with others. That is why those who do not have a home are seen to be lost and unsure of their identity. There is nothing keeping them secure in one place and centering the core of their lives. Whether connected to a concrete residence or an abstract notion, it holds a noteworthy place in a persons heart.

The book shows Jack Boughton to be a lost man who finds himself adrift as life has progressed. Even from the time of growing up he was considered the black sheep from the other children. He felt out of place, and divided from his very outgoing family. He didn't truly find peace and rest in his household and this caused him to feel as though he didn't have a home. A place where he felt the most secure and ultimately where his heart would reside at. He believed leaving home at an early age would help him find clarity, but instead it caused more confusion and never ending discomfort. He started making mistakes with money, and became more unanchored as time went on.

Most individuals are completely unaware of how big an impact a home has on their lives. This is initially the place you feel the most valued, secure, and safe. The dynamic of it all brings an inner peace that spurs on happiness. To create a home you have to invest emotionally and physically into where your heart is. Personalizing the specific location you take refuge in transforms a house to a home. If no effort is put into a significant location, or the mindset of an individual, the person can become largely disoriented. This then has the probability of causing a person to drift, not knowing where they belong.

When finally returning to his old, childhood home in Gilead, Jack finds himself quite uneasy. There is a certain struggle of him wanting to be accepted back into his family. At the same time he wonders if he could ever find rest in a household that was never truly a home for him. When the siblings first reunite, tension along with complex emotions that had been bottled up for over a decade, start to arise between the two. In order to create a loving home its foundation rests on communication and mutual respect. If there is no effort made towards one another wires often get crossed. Through out the story Glory shows a great amount of forgiveness for Jacks past. She behaves in such a kind manner that Jack starts to open up to her. This creates a stable relationship that helps Jack feel at peace and shows him that it is never too late to find home.

Home impacts every aspect of our lives. When an individual has no home, they are seen to be lost and unsure of themselves. Whether you find that peace and rest in a building or family, home is where your heart is at. The location of a persons childhood usually is referred to as the starting point of their identity. Often times this can be described as a country or even a small town. In this it starts to define the individual giving them a sense of pride and contentment. People are very unaware of how big of an impact a home has on a person. Having a home can center a persons life and bring necessary clarity to that individuals life. In Marilynn Robinsons novel Home, we are shown the value of investing time and effort into creating a stable home especially through relationships because those that don't, drift and become unsure of their identity.

Bibliography:

Robinson, Marilynne. Home. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008. Print.

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