Michael J. Piperato
English 122-30
Fall 2014
Essay #2

A home only exists as a home when the inhabitant makes a connection with that place. This connection is not the same for everyone. Some will feel a bond with brick and mortar while others find solace amongst the tall grass and aging trees. This is the beauty of a home, it is not the same for everyone, but perfect for the one person that matters. This link between place and person is bound by differing elements such as the tranquility of the landscape, energy of the environment, relationship with the animals as well as the community surrounding it. If you were to describe an ideal home, you’d likely find peacefulness and serenity to be apt adjectives. After a long day of work or school, it’s important to be able to have a place to relax and unwind. For some, this place of calmness is found “amongst the wet grasses and wild barley-covered meadows” (Rogers 334). A person who calls the wild their home counts down the hours until they can bask in nature’s glory. For others, their sanctuary is “in the inner city” (Clifton 324). These people find peace where many would see anything but. They’ve grown so accustomed to the lights and sounds, silence is deafening. Neither is right nor wrong but a manner of preference. While some look for peace as they rest their head, others seek a dwelling that rejuvenates them as they rise. These type of people seek a place with revitalizing energy, an area that “radiates purity” and instills energy (Rogers 335). This power, this life-force is what drives the human spirit and gets the blood pumping. To these thrill-seekers, it’s as if their domicile provides them a certain vigor through “magical powers” and “healing energy” (Rogers 335). They find that the natural power of renewal can wake up the body and soul better than any cup of coffee ever could.
For many, the animal kingdom is as much a part of their home as the bed they sleep in. For some this is confined to the dog or cat they name and live with and for others it embodies every blue jay, squirrel and deer “in their wide-open country” (Dickey 325). These animals exemplify the freedom of the wild and for many that is where they feel most at home. For those lovers of creatures, it is the “connection, common ground [and] authentic understanding with animals” that helps them feel they are in a place they belong (Tipper 1). These very connections are what the idea of “home” is predicated upon. Yet, for many, the most important part of feeling at home is a sense of community. A desire to be part of something greater than oneself. There is a certain vitality found in “the spirit of the place and the ambition of the people of live there” (Van de Walle 8). This unifying force is like the concrete that holds the bricks of a house together. Without a sense of community, a person could feel homeless even in a mansion. There is an importance to being in a place where people “all know one another so well” (Bass 283). They can help and support each other better than any beams or studs in a house. The power of the coalescing of people cannot be understated. Connections are everything in life. While lumber can make a house, it’s the connection between a place and a person that makes a home. What makes these associations however can vary from person to person. The tranquility of a place may bind one person, while the energy or life-force of a location attracts another. There are also those who need to embrace the wildlife in an area to feel at rest while another person may yearn for the sense of community found through his fellow man. There is no right or wrong answer to what makes a home. In the end, it doesn’t matter how we connect, as long as we do. Without these connections, man can never know what it truly means to be home.

Works Cited
Rogers, Pattiann. “Rolling Naked in the Morning Dew” Reading Literature and Writing Argument. Fifth Edition. Missy James & Alan P. Merickel Pearson, 2013

Clifton, Lucille. “in the inner city” Reading Literature and Writing Argument. Fifth Edition. Missy James & Alan P. Merickel Pearson, 2013

Dickey, James. “Deer among Cattle” Reading Literature and Writing Argument. Fifth Edition. Missy James & Alan P. Merickel Pearson, 2013

Bass, Rick. “Antlers” Reading Literature and Writing Argument. Fifth Edition.
Missy James & Alan P. Merickel Pearson, 2013

Tipper, Becky. "Moments Of Being And Ordinary Human-Animal Encounters." Virginia Woolf Miscellany 84 (2013): 14-16. Literary Reference Center. Web. 29 Oct. 2014.

Van de Walle, Mark. "At Home At The Other End Of The Rainbow." Virginia Quarterly Review 90.1 (2014): 72-89. Literary Reference Center. Web. 29 Oct. 2014.