For a long time I always just assumed that every house I walked into was a home. A structure with walls, a door, some windows and a roof. For me that was it for a while. Being bounced around from one house to the next.
Every house I went to I felt there was always something missing but I had no idea what it was. Every house I went to had pictures on the wall of people smiling and laughing and handmade cards and pictures that looked like they were hand drawn by children. The parents were so proud to have their child’s work on their wall as a sort of long lasting memory.
As I grew older I realized my thought of a home was not what it was supposed to be. After many houses I finally found a permanent one. Again that house had pictures of smiling people and children’s artwork that covered the walls of the house. I believe it. I had never been to a house like this before. As soon as you stepped into it there was a weird feeling of warmth and happiness that had filled each and every one of the rooms. There were kids running around carrying toys with big giant smiles on their faces. I was able to finally settle in. I shared a room with a girl around my age. In that room it was filled with fairies and butterflies and a lot of pink. This was the first time I was able to fully unpack and put MY things on the walls. My artwork and pictures were finally on a wall for a long lasting memory that I could call my own.
When I was fully stated by law that was my home now we got our first professional picture with the whole family. I was wearing a pink long sleeve shirt with a giraffe on it. The next day I woke up and came downstairs to find that picture that we had just taken together with me was on a wall big and bold for everyone to see. To be shown to anyone who walked through that front will be able to see.
I finally understood what a home really meant it wasn’t the walls or the windows or even the roof. It is the pictures, artwork and achievements that filled every room in the house. It is the people that love you. It is the feeling of security and love when you walk through the front door. There isn’t anything missing anymore. I finally had a house that felt like a home.