An Adaptable Home
There’s a reason people would want to go to their homes whenever they have a hard day’s work or are just trying to deal with their struggles. It’s a very nice and relaxing feeling to do this sort of routine. But of course there are those times when we want to leave our houses because of our need to explore and seek new things. But every time we have our fill of the outside world, people generally wish to go back to their own house to escape. There’s an explanation for this and it involves our adaptation to the homes we live in. Adaptation, adjective, able to adjust to new conditions.
It has been proven time and again that a home doesn’t necessarily have to be a house, it can be anything that humans have grown attached to for an abundant time span that makes them not want to leave it forever. It can be said that people who have taken a long vacation, are happy to return to their own state where they recognize it’s scenery, temperature and rainy days versus sunny days that they have grown accustomed to. However, it doesn’t mean a home has to necessarily be a place where you were born and raised in or you lived there your whole life. There are certain situations that happen over time that can make a place become a home.
A great example is the movie “The Shawshank Redemption”. There’s a term that is brought up in the plot,“Institutionalized”. Institutionalized refers to the time someone lives in a certain environment, and they eventually become more “dependent” on it. Even if the conditions are harsh or extreme, people can adapt and it becomes a home. In the movie a former senior inmate decides to commit suicide because of his inability to cope with the outside world, after being institutionalized for so long. Instead of living a happy life after being released from prison, he feels scared and unable to cope. Prison may be ideal, but if it’s adaptable and can become a home.
In Vietnam, Soldiers were known to grow a liking to army life. At first it all may be too horrific, but eventually a person can adapt to the fear and surroundings and find comfort in routine and the people around them. C’mon, who doesn’t remember that scene from Apocalypse now when the Lieutenant doesn’t flinch when there’s an explosion behind him. This proves how someone can adapt to a cruel setting and be able to coexist in it and thrive.
In my experience, my house is a home because of the time I have spent there. In my house I do everyday things, like brush my teeth, eat, watch t.v., sleep and this brings me comfort. A home is the condition and sense that a person adapts to in that place. The place lures us to live within its confines and we adapt to make it our home.