Have you lived in a lot of places in your life or just a couple?  How has where you lived influenced you and your life?  I moved around a lot when I was younger.  For some people, that might instill a wanderlust and sense of adventure.  For me, it had the opposite effect.

My kids are going to have to sell our family home someday because I’m not moving anywhere again. At last count, I’ve had 26 different addresses in my life. Considering I’ve spent the last sixteen years in this house and thirteen in the one before, you can see how often I moved earlier in my life.

A few years ago, when we were considering an addition to our house, my husband suggested it might be better to move to a new house instead. I told him if he wanted to he could, but I would miss him. And besides, the addition turned out great.

Perhaps this attachment is at the root of my propensity to nest. I want fresh flowers on my desk and throw pillows on the couch. I need to personalize (read “claim”) my space. I like to travel to new places, but then I want to come home to my own house.

I’ve read stories about the rich and famous who have six different houses on different continents. That would make me crazy! I can’t imagine having my things spread out like that. I just know that if I were looking for the scarf to go with my dress, the scarf would be in one country and the dress in another. Besides, I don’t think you can have more than one real home.

My home is my refuge. It’s my safe space. I know where everything goes (well almost everything…) I break out in a cold sweat at the thought of packing everything up and moving somewhere else. This is where I belong. And it’s where I’m staying.