The wandering thoughts – the home abroad
It is human nature – we are always thinking, often wandering in our own thoughts. Thinking about past or future and imagining hypothetical scenarios is a part of our day-to-day life. We are never content with what we have, always thinking about ‘what could be’ or ‘what could have been’.
Millions of us leave our homes and our countries to go abroad, searching for a better future, looking for a better life. Some leave by choice – because we want to try new things and new places; others leave because of necessity, because they have to – for one reason or another. Regardless of where we are and what we have accomplished, we are never satisfied with what we got. Once we go abroad, once we establish ourselves in the the new place, our mind wanders and thinks about going back to the motherland – where we originally come from. It is not because we need to, it is not because we have to. It is because of our nature – we are never satisfied with what we have. The present is never enough!
Most of the immigrants, regardless how long they have been away from their own country or how good life they live in the new place, have nostalgic attachment to their homeland. It is nothing new, it is part of being human. We never let go of the past, especially if past involves sweet memories of childhood.
Many of us, those who are settled abroad, often think about going back, returning for good. Even after we have made new life in the new country, the thought of going back often creeps into our minds. It is a good nostalgic memory of past. Most of us think about it – going back permanently, but very few actually actually try it. And those who return to their motherland, the experience is often not what they expected or what we imagined.
The simple fact is that time changes everything. The home we left behind years or decades ago is not the same home anymore. Everything and everybody has moved on. The old friends, the old neighbors, the small shop at the corner, the big tree next to the pond – everything and everybody has moved on. The nostalgic memories from long time ago that we want to relive today are nonexistent in reality. The surroundings have evolved, the neighborhoods have changed and the even the culture and customs have changed over the years. Continue reading
