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1cafepithecus
I'm looking for books (fiction or nonfiction) about returning home, family, stuff like that. I'll post the short version of my current life crisis, so you have more of an idea of what I'm talking about.
I grew up in a very small town outside St. Louis, MO. I hated it and was just completely miserable with small town life and farmland all around me. I also really needed to "break free" from my parents and be independent. At 18 I moved (site unseen) 1000 miles away a place where I had a few friends I could stay with. Nine years later I am still here, now with a college degree and a job I love. I've never been wild about this area for a lot of reasons, and I know that all areas have good and bad points. But...
Recently, for the first time, I have started feeling very homesick. It started up a little bit after I went back last Xmas to visit, and within the last month, it's gotten worse. A week ago, I dropped everything and went back to visit for about nine days to kind of feel it out (I never really did much IN St. Louis when I lived there ) - and I realized there is so much more to the STL area than I ever realized, living in my small town 30 minutes away.
Since I got back I've been even MORE homesick. I find myself thinking about it all the time and reading things about STL and looking at pictures of the Arch and really sad stuff like that. :) And even though my family made me miserable growing up (or I allowed them to affect me that way - I'll relegate that issue to therapy and not this forum :) I wish I was around more. My family was never very "family-oriented," but I wish I had those bonds and I feel this very strange need to sort of "go back home" and redefine how much importance family has.
I guess I am having trouble figuring out how I can be so homesick for something I couldn't get away from fast enough. I know I wouldn't be living in my small, rural hometown, I would be living in the city environment - so things would be familiar and a brand new experience at the same time - but I'd be back around family regularly for the first time in 9 years.
If anyone knows of any books dealing with this type of issue - I think it would be really helpful.
I grew up in a very small town outside St. Louis, MO. I hated it and was just completely miserable with small town life and farmland all around me. I also really needed to "break free" from my parents and be independent. At 18 I moved (site unseen) 1000 miles away a place where I had a few friends I could stay with. Nine years later I am still here, now with a college degree and a job I love. I've never been wild about this area for a lot of reasons, and I know that all areas have good and bad points. But...
Recently, for the first time, I have started feeling very homesick. It started up a little bit after I went back last Xmas to visit, and within the last month, it's gotten worse. A week ago, I dropped everything and went back to visit for about nine days to kind of feel it out (I never really did much IN St. Louis when I lived there ) - and I realized there is so much more to the STL area than I ever realized, living in my small town 30 minutes away.
Since I got back I've been even MORE homesick. I find myself thinking about it all the time and reading things about STL and looking at pictures of the Arch and really sad stuff like that. :) And even though my family made me miserable growing up (or I allowed them to affect me that way - I'll relegate that issue to therapy and not this forum :) I wish I was around more. My family was never very "family-oriented," but I wish I had those bonds and I feel this very strange need to sort of "go back home" and redefine how much importance family has.
I guess I am having trouble figuring out how I can be so homesick for something I couldn't get away from fast enough. I know I wouldn't be living in my small, rural hometown, I would be living in the city environment - so things would be familiar and a brand new experience at the same time - but I'd be back around family regularly for the first time in 9 years.
If anyone knows of any books dealing with this type of issue - I think it would be really helpful.
2cafepithecus
hmm... bump :(
3MerryMary
I don't know of any nonfiction titles that would suit you, but I'm sure there are some out there.
As for fiction, there are probably more. The title that comes to my mind at the moment is Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. It is a story of sisters. One clings to her hometown as an anchor in her troubled life, and the other runs away as soon as she can, and comes back later. They both have missing elements in their lives that they must discover. I think you would identify with the second sister, who is pushed by necessity to return home, but unsure of what she will find, how she will fit, and if she really wants to do this! Sound familiar?
As for fiction, there are probably more. The title that comes to my mind at the moment is Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. It is a story of sisters. One clings to her hometown as an anchor in her troubled life, and the other runs away as soon as she can, and comes back later. They both have missing elements in their lives that they must discover. I think you would identify with the second sister, who is pushed by necessity to return home, but unsure of what she will find, how she will fit, and if she really wants to do this! Sound familiar?
4DK1010
You might like Fatima's Good Fortune by Joanne Dryansky. It's fiction and not set in America, but the main character, Fatima does contemplate where to call home after a series of events causes her to leave her adored native island.
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IMO, our views and attitudes change over time. Seeking independence is developmentally natural for a young adult. After you've "found yourself" you can comfortably find your roots.
"Your family and your love must be cultivated like a garden. " - Jim Rohn
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IMO, our views and attitudes change over time. Seeking independence is developmentally natural for a young adult. After you've "found yourself" you can comfortably find your roots.
"Your family and your love must be cultivated like a garden. " - Jim Rohn
5Copperskye
I just finished a fiction book that may fit the bill - Brooklyn by Colm Toibin. A small town Irish girl emigrates to Brooklyn after WWII. She's homesick, travels home, and frankly doesn't know what to do. It is an excellent story.
I moved across the country 22 years ago and my childhood home in NJ was just sold last week. I literally cannot go home again. It's a tough realization and everyone's circumstances are different but you're not alone in your homesickness.
I moved across the country 22 years ago and my childhood home in NJ was just sold last week. I literally cannot go home again. It's a tough realization and everyone's circumstances are different but you're not alone in your homesickness.
6nemoman
I highly recommend The Fool's Progress by Edward Abbey. Ed, who has a life long passion for the Southwest heads back to his roots in the aptly named town of Home, PA.
7unlucky
Just because they feel left out I have to say the obvious (sorry) : the Odyssey and Divine Comedy. The universe would implode if this topic continues without mentioning them.
8MerryMary
If an explosion is Boom, is an implosion Moob?
(I approve of your inclusions. I'm just curious.)
(I approve of your inclusions. I'm just curious.)
9Sandydog1
>7 unlucky:,
Yeah, and let's leave Cold Mountain out of this. The Odyssey is much better, as was Oh Brother, Where Art Thou.
Yeah, and let's leave Cold Mountain out of this. The Odyssey is much better, as was Oh Brother, Where Art Thou.
10MarianV
Has no one mentioned You can't go Home again?)
If you have a good job, you might want to stay put, at least until this recession is over. You can always go home on visits, holidays, vacations. ect. A grandson who has been living in Florida returned home a couple months ago when the place he was working at closed. The economy is going to be a decider in where a lot of people live.
If you have a good job, you might want to stay put, at least until this recession is over. You can always go home on visits, holidays, vacations. ect. A grandson who has been living in Florida returned home a couple months ago when the place he was working at closed. The economy is going to be a decider in where a lot of people live.
