Where is home?

Home for me has always been what fills a house and not the house itself. Many times I’ve packed up all the belonging in my room, moved to a different house and then unpacked into my new room, but I also brought with me the social attitudes of place I left, not just the belongings. I feel this was an important fact that Ilyian left out of her essay. People identify themselves with where they’re from and where they’ve been more than where they are. She may not call Seattle or New York home but these cities leave a mark on her personality. We can nomadically change our dwellings as often as we please, but our emotional memories and ties fill our homes more than our belongings.
I moved several times as a kid, back and forth between Tulsa and Norman, then Springfield and finally to Port Orchard. Even in Port Orchard where I moved 5 times in a town that felt smaller then some malls the house, apartment, spare room became my home because of my belognings and the emotional luggage I brought with me. Most recently (last week) I moved to Seattle. I spent months sorting through everything I owned and deciding if the space it took up was of equal or greater emotional value to its physical presence. I feel I whittled it down to a respectful dozen boxes. I thinking Ilyian would call me a sentimental nester. I was sure I would be home sick and miss my friends, family and pets back in Port Orchard within the first week. I think that because of crap I filled my dorm room with I felt comfortable enough to explore the new city. By the second day I had a few new friends that I explored the city with by the third day I blurted out “home” when talking about the dorms. It felt like saying “I love you” on the first date, but it also felt like it wasn’t a mistake.
Maybe I’m an optimist who makes new homes and families everywhere I go. Maybe I’m in an ignorant bliss not understanding what “home” really means. Maybe I just say “I love you” on the first date.