
Well, apparently, my mom didn’t get the same memo I got because we have the exact opposite views on the subject. She
never misses an opportunity to whip out the No Going Home card any chance she gets (in her mind, I’m sure she even has it laminated and done up in a beautiful font). I’m her prime – and it would seem only – target these days.
The times I get sad driving by our old apartment?
“Melissa, you can’t go home again.”
The times I bought ALF and Smurf stuffed animals on eBay?
“Melissa, you can’t go home again.”
The times I yearned to be admitted to the hospital for a pick-me-up bag of I.V. fluid?
“Melissa, you can’t go home again.”
You get the idea. Blah. Blah. Blah. Yes, that’s all I heard of her responses. Should a phrase so blatantly negative and cynical even be allowed in our pro-memories, pro-positive world? And if, by some chance slimmer, the phrase does indeed hold a kernel of truth? Where does that leave us?
Danielle Todd says
The past is the past. It can't be duplicated and I've always found any attempts to recreate a beloved childhood memory has left me disappointed.
Regarding going home – my parents turned my bedroom into a den right after I left for University. They always told me I was always welcome there, but their actions (like replacing my bed with a sofa) have implied otherwise!
Fashion art and other fancies says
Going home works well for some and not so well for others.
suburban prep says
The house that I grew up in from age 13 and then on and off until I got married has been torn down. My parents tore it down because the foundation fell. My parents live 6 blocks down the street from the property. One of my sisters and her family (she has 4 young children) built a house on the property. So I guess you can say I can sort of go home but not really. I know I cried the day that the house I lived in was knocked down.
Wendy says
I don't see why a person can't visit every now and then.
Grace Martin says
You can go home again…. but you can't stay.
If you stay you'll realize that either 1.) it wasn't as wonderful as you remember, or 2.) you'll realize it isn't the same anymore.
But maybe it is good to realize those things sometimes. Then you realize how important it is to keep moving forward.
But I think the smurf stuffed animal is okay. 🙂
Samantha Kimble says
Yes, you can go home, but it will never be the same. But that's a good thing because it means that we have good memories from the past to want to go back to but have grown enough in our lives for it never to be truly the same.