What does "home" mean?
I hope you all thoroughly enjoyed Memorial Day weekend.
I take only a few weekends off a year, because the business of residential real estate happens on weekends. Memorial Day weekend is one that I regularly take off. It falls in the middle of the busy season, when I need a break to some perspective. This year, I spent the Sunday at a memorial service for a colleague of mine. I learned a great deal about style, perseverance and integrity from Hilda Silverman. I will miss her.
Memorial Day brought to mind the question of how one remembers “home.” To what extent is it the building and to what extent is it the people and their activity that we recall?
Where I grew up, most of the men in the neighborhood were veterans of World War II. The houses were almost all built between 1950 and 1962. The houses were nothing special. Yet, I remember Memorial Day: flags were flown, parades went through town, the neighbors washed their boat, and everyone started mowing their lawns...
Most of my extended family were still renting in the City. Their homes were homes, too. The big difference was that most of the activities I remember there were indoors. All the winter events were in the City and we held the barbeques.
What do you think? Is a home a house and an apartment an apartment? Do you need to own to feel like it is your home? Do you need to have outdoor space?
