Home Is Where The Halo Is

I just got home a few hours ago. I wrote the following entry while on the plane:


Last night. The best Tuesday night I've probably ever had. I leaned to TJ at one point and told him that I'm finally realizing why people say their college years are the best years of their lives. I'm just glad I'm finally realizing it before it's too late.

I'm not going to be modest here when I admit that I cooked a pretty damn good dinner last night. I couldn't have done it without the assistance of my trusty sous chef, Tom. Also, my current obsession: Malibu coconut rum.

You know, people are right when they say that your friends make your life. Whether back in LA or in Columbus, I believe I found the best possible friends in existence. Good people. Kind hearts and generous souls. They crack me up and warm my heart and it's getting hard to explain without sounding corny, but it's like for so long I had just forgotten what it felt like and what it takes to be truly happy-- and when I say happy I mean this unexplainable deep-seated feeling of contentment.

What I'm getting at is...I'd be lost without them.

When my plane was taking off, I was looking out the window over the city of Columbus. Columbus will never be my home, LA has eternal claims over that title, but no matter where I end up in this world, Columbus, you will always hold a special piece of my heart. I never-- trust me, NEVER-- thought I would say this, but when I was looking down at the twinkling city of scarlet and gray, I thought about how when I leave this place for good, I'll probably cry like a baby.

Living in Columbus has been the ultimate test of tough love. It has seldom been easy, but it has been so rich with lessons, the value of moving here has outweighed any and all of the sad days. I wonder if this is how my dad feels about New York-- the place in one's youth where one truly finds oneself, becomes an adult. Learns. Lives.

Don't get me wrong-- I'm so excited to go home and smell my mom's perfume around the house, hear my dad's voice booming ridiculous jokes, feel Toddy's small frame when we embrace. I just land at LAX this time, the millionth time, with such a newfound appreciation for things. I am so, so fortunate....fortunate beyond my wildest dreams.

It has never, in my entire life, felt this good to be alive.