Home Is Where The Heart Is

 

Florida pine trees ~ tjbuckley

The last time I went anywhere of note was a little more than a year ago... but it was a milestone trip back home to Florida, where I hadn't been since before the pandemic (way back in 2019). I enjoyed seeing friends from my formative years -- a few from junior high & high school, others from college and some from grad school -- but mostly I hung out with my brother.

I still feel a nostalgic connection to my place of origin: I'm grateful to have grown up there, mostly due to the time frame (early 1950s, 60s, 70s and mid-80s), before the multitude of high-rises and exclusive McMansions were built. I remember running around in the yard barefoot, thinking nothing of riding my bike several miles to my friend's house on a Saturday, swimming in cool pools during the sweltering summer, going horseback riding on the weekends, acting in high school plays (and later productions in college and grad school), working at EPCOT as a scene painter before the park opened to the public, and so on. It's nice to go back and visit, but after living in places like New York City, Los Angeles, Middle Georgia and New England, I no longer consider Florida to be my home. 

Me as Hedda Gabler in college 

Instead, I dream of moving south, but not too far south. I also have a connection to another Southern state: North Carolina. Having spent some time in the Western part of the state, I think I could find some comfort there. The only other place I dream of going is very far away, and that place is Ireland. I am pretty sure I have roots there (or perhaps in England or Scotland) and perhaps North Carolina reminds me of those places: green and verdant, with streams and hills and waterfalls. It's far away, but I still believe that one dream or the other can still come true before my time is up.

To see more images of Ireland, visit Ireland Travel Kit at: https://www.irelandtravelkit.com/exploring-the-hill-of-tara-sacred-well-sheela-na-gig-and-sloping-trenches-tara-co-meath/

The Hill of Tara in County Meath: Sacred Well,
Sheela-na-gig & Sloping Trenches - Ingenious Ireland