Where's home?

During the typical discourse of introductions and networking, we've all been asked, "Where are you from?" While some of us are certain of the answer, the rest of us are ambiguous.

In the profile section of Facebook, there is a window for the user to input your hometown. Users are forced to decide – where am I from? Where do I call my "hometown?" I’ve filled out this window more than once (and deleted it more than once), with the names of different towns where I’ve lived, never quite being able to land on which town I want to claim as my “hometown.”

In my last blog entry, I wrote about Dana, Indiana – a precious little place in Western Indiana where I visit during summers, and where lived a child. I could claim Dana. I was born in California, and so I could claim it. I would certainly call the long period that I lived in Reidsville, NC, my most formative years -middle and high school, first boyfriend, church formation, and accepting a call to ministry (First Baptist Church, Reidsville). Reidsville would certainly qualify as a suitable response for any hometown enquiries. Still, I'm ambivalent - having lived in California, Indiana, and several towns in North Carolina.

To be coy, "home is where the heart is," and that is always true. Hometowns, however, may be subject to other variables.

Where do you call your hometown? What’s in a hometown?