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Gift of homecoming

Not surprisingly based on the name of this column, I am intrigued by the experiences, relationships and education that occur along life’s journey, and I am increasingly convinced that life is all about the journey.  However, this week, my thoughts have been haunted by the concept of “home.” Some have said that home and house should never be confused. I agree.  Others have said that home is not a physical location but rather people and relationships.  I partially agree, and would like to explain.

I am one of those people that likes to be rooted, hence why I am so pleased to be back in my home state of West Virginia.  When visiting in a town where I lived with my family while growing up, I like to go back and see the house where we lived.  It creates a flood of memories, and that reminds me of home.  When I think of my childhood home my thoughts are of my beloved parents and siblings, experiences great and small with family and friends.  Home was where I experienced unconditional love, acceptance, and the support to become the adult I am today.  Home was not brick and mortar, and yet there was a place that serves as a repository of memories, where to this day, I can return and find comfort and peace in reflection.

Last weekend was Homecoming at Davis & Elkins College.  I met so many alumni that returned to their alma mater with a sparkle in their eye to step foot back on this beloved campus and reconnect with friends and faculty that influenced their journey.  Coincidentally, I returned to my alma mater two weeks ago for Homecoming and had a similar experience.  There is a magic to stepping  foot back on the ground where life was influenced and the journey enriched. When we return to our alma mater we reconnect with our own history as well as the institution’s history.  The result is a sense of belonging and a contentment that we are now a part of that long line of men and women that have been transformed by the mission envisioned by the founders more than a century ago.

I owe a debt of gratitude to the Swiss writer Pascal Mercier, who wrote in his novel “Night Train to Lisbon” the following:

“We leave something of ourselves behind when we leave a place,

we stay there, even though we go away.

And there are things in us that we can find again only by going back there.”

Perhaps there is a part of me left behind in each of those houses I like to visit, each of those people that intersected with my life, and each of those experiences that molded me into the person I am today.  Perhaps, all those “places” together create a sense of home.  They certainly create a sense of identity and peace.  And each of them make up my journey … my life.

For the gift of “Homecoming” I thank God!

The journey continues. …

——

Chris A. Wood is president of Davis & Elkins College.

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