No Place Like Home

No Place Like Home

My son Ted always comes home for his birthday…he’s here this week. And we have been taking walks in the cool June evenings. Every few months, he eagerly leaves LA to return to Kansas—he misses the comparative quiet, clean and order of things here. As we walked the other night, fireflies twinkled in the yards. Kids rode their bikes down tree lined streets, couples strolled with well-behaved dogs, and our fellow walkers greeted us with “hello” or a friendly wave. In my 1960s neighborhood, with the fireflies blinking, I remembered my childhood when we would catch them in jars and set them by our bedsides…my parents sneaking in to release them from captivity after we fell asleep.

We mostly use “home” as a noun to describe a residence or dwelling place. But the feeling of home is so much bigger than that. It’s someplace we yearn for…something we all seek. I’m grateful for those moments of “home” in life. When all feels just right for awhile in my little piece of the universe. In those moments, God seems to whisper a connection in my soul…a connection to the past, present, and future that everything’s ok. All will be well.

I wish for more of those moments of home. I wish for everyone more of those moments.

Holy one, let us all find the comfort of home in the here and now wherever are. Let us extend the feeling of home by opening our hearts to share that comfort through our connection with others in the everyday moments of our lives.

Judy B is mom to Ted and Johnny, and a founding member of Peace Church, where she also feels at home!