When you don’t know where home is
By: Jessica Semaan
Wherever you go is a foreign land
Where you live is a city of roaming strangers
Where you came from is painful and deceiving
Where you are heading to is nowhere to be found
You are too old, too jaded, or too broke to go anywhere new
So you feel stuck, stuck in the walls of your own handmade jail
You are a refugee of a home that does not exist
Then you think, in your desperation, what if home is someone
The lover you have not met, the partner you already live with, your friend from childhood
Then you cling to that someone, you surrender to their love and approval
But the moment comes where you realize they are not home
They are them and you are you
There are no home you can own
And the truth hits hard: no one is home and no where is home
You envy even more those who have it, those who found it, those who brag about it
And in your misery, you stop looking for a home
It is neither north, nor south
It is neither east, nor west
Home is no place, no people
Home is moments
Moments when you feel safe and loved
Home is a stranger you meet on a plane who pours their hearts to you
Home is the scent of your favorite dish as you were growing up
Home is drinking with your best friend, laughing and crying at your bad decisions
Home is the laugh of your new born child
Home is not a place, not a person. Home is moments. And they are at your fingertips.
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About the author: Born and raised in Lebanon, Jessica is the founder of The Passion Co.and Start Conference. Previously, she spent 4 years at Airbnb, building and scaling operations. She teaches at Stanford Design School, and resides in San Francisco. Stay in touch with her work by subscribing to her bi-weekly newsletter here.
