Home

                                   
"Home is where the heart is"---or is it?  Maybe it is the place that becomes an individual residential address?  What about an escape from reality?  Even my ninety-year old grandfather claimed that some people consider home where "he hangs his hat."  The definition of home has been redefined for me over the last several years.  I consider myself extremely fortunate to call many places home because of the unique settings, lasting memories, and of course the amazing people.

When introducing myself to my new group of students each year or just a random stranger, I call myself a true North Carolinian loving all regions from the mountains to the sea.  All parts of my life are found all the way in between from the rural towns to the growing suburbs to the adventurous cities.  So do these places eventually become home?

Boone-The birthplace on my birth certificate and the story my mom shared every birthday explaining having to wait on the doctor to return from an Appalachian State University Football Game before my entrance into the world.  Ironically, 18 years later, I would be the one waiting on the Mountaineers football season to start.  This college town transformed my life from the time spent as a student but also as a Boone resident appreciating the beauty of the NC Mountains.

Banner Elk-Even though my beginning years of life were spent in this ski resort town, I still can recollect some memories of the time spent there.  Especially on the beautiful campus of Lees McCrae College and our house that sat on the top of a mountain along the winding Hickory Nut Gap Road.  This land is now mine. You can only imagine the many dreams of building my own cabin on the hill.

The house where I spent my childhood.

Highfalls-

My great-grandmother's house

I would get excited to see this name on a map.  A Deep River Community that keeps everyone connected.  My father's roots belong in Caviness Town and it was an honor to grow up in a house that sat on the land that he is used to farm as a boy.  The K-8 school shaped me into the individual I am today with the love of learning from numerous influential educators.  Each year I teach my own students, I reflect on my own educational experiences in that small school.

Troy (Montgomery County)

One would never guess this would be on my home list, but anytime I ride through this area, I cry.  Not because of sad memories, but many beginning chapters of my life were started here.  I began my teaching career at Page Street Elementary and still remain grateful for the networks established with dedicated teachers while working there.  Some of those educators remain my closest friends and colleagues, and I am forever indebted to them for their guidance and encouragement during those first five years of teaching.  I also reminisce of that time period by riding past the "chicken coop house" on Russell Street.  The 12 x 12 window in the front of the house brought in so much sunlight for the young married couple who started their life there.  Even though the house was sold a few years later and the light faded when they both separated on different paths, some of the fondest memories were spent there.


Bennett-another small town, right down the road from Highfalls, became my safe haven.  An amazing woman allowed me to live in her home place, and this house became more than a home to me.  Surfaced right across from the Baptist Church, the bell hymnals and church sign quotes, got me through the toughest time of my life.  It was also a blessing working in the neighboring town of Bonlee.  This small community school welcomed me with open arms and my short time spent there turned into a lifetime of learning experiences and genuine friendships.  I will always remain a "Dragon."

Outer Banks- I would have not considered myself a beach girl, but my first visit to the Outer Banks, took my breath away.  I am somewhat embarrassed to admit I had never traveled to this part of the state prior to my mid-20's, but I instantly became captivated with the history, geography, and culture of where our country originated.  The tales of the Lost Colony, Blackbeard, and World War II German U-boats are nothing compared to the local narratives shared by the coastal inhabitants whose family generations date back hundreds and hundreds of years ago.

Ocracoke-I fell in love with this island town years before it became home.  The primary reason for my first visit to the island was speaking to the Board of Trustees who represented the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT).  It was exciting to have this amazing organization stretched from the mountains in Cullowhee to this beautiful remote island on the coast.  The NCCAT facility on Ocracoke was the former Coast Guard station, so one can only imagine the history of that building!  A few months following my first visit, I returned with my NC Teacher of the Year Team focusing on a teacher leadership.  Our seminar experience was enriched by the kayaking and walking tours of the island, including the small school that served Pre-Kindergarten through twelfth grade students.  I would have never guessed that five years later, the top corner classroom on the 2nd floor of the elementary building would belong to me.  And my fourth graders.

 The walk down historical Howard Street became the highlight of that trip because of the stories that were told by native Ocracoker, Alton Ballance.  I still consider that road to be somewhat magical, almost similar to something out of a storybook, because of Mr. Ballance's stories.  That special road connects all generations of islanders.  Even some outsiders like myself.  That same Ocracoker has shared his stories with the world after publishing his book, Ocracokers, in the 1980's.  However, his closest friends and family know his best stories are shared from the porch swing of his grandmother's house.  Alton's stories  will be passed down to the next generation in hopes that they will be carried on forever.  I am proud that my own daughter has already been part of this rich family history.  Emma Reese Ballance will celebrate being part of this island culture and already exhibits so many of her daddy's qualities.
Island time has brought new meaning to my life.  And it isn't what we would assume of the typical Jimmy Buffet song with toes in the sand and a margarita in hand.  It isn't (completely) about the time rushing or missing the ferry.  It isn't about the time of being lazy in a hammock. It is the time that I have found myself at home.

Home.  It is where the heart is.  The soul.  And the mind too.  I might consider myself "homeless" or maybe just plain "homesick" because my heart, soul, and mind reside in all of these places.  As I click my heels together three times, I know there is no place like home.