My 2025 Word of the Year.

I love this word. It is a Spanish word. The meaning is broad, yet concise. It describes a place where one feels safe, a place from which one’s strength of character is drawn, a place where one feels at home. What a beatiful sentiment!

I grew up in a place I thought was heaven on earth. Mainly because it held all the beauty I had yet to exerience below the age of ten and all the people I loved at the time, my parents and my siblings. Once I got older, and saw that other people were happier and lived in places of even more beauty, either their homes and or their outdoor property, I wanted what they had. I became uncertain that what I was growing up with was actually the end all.

Since those young years of discovery and angst, I have grown into a place of contentment. Through living in different places and having different routines based on the design of our home and or yard or location of our street in proximity to our work, schools, grocery stores, banks, and doctors’ offices, I have found peace. I have determined that no matter where I live, what shape my house is or where it’s location is, that I am home where my family is and how I am feeling about the growth I have made in my life.

Recently, our beloved watch dog, Max, an 86 pound mix of Golden Lab and Mountain Cur, was hit and run over by an unknown driver. When I say run over, I mean literally as they left a tire mark across his rump. The accident broke his pelvis. Although it looks as if he is healing and will recover from this incident, he will never be same again. He is left with a limp, a wonky body, and will suffer long-term pain from arthritis way sooner than his three years should allow. I am heartbroken for the once lovely, high-spirited pup that he was before the accident. Somehow, my home is less now for the pain he will endure despite his love and devotion for my husband, his owner.

Home means a place where we can be safe. Although Max was outside on the road where he shouldn’t have been, just the fact that he got injured right outside our fence, makes me feel sad. In order to restore this feeling of safety, I choose to be grateful that he has returned to his happy, joyful, adventurous self for however long he continues to be in our care. Life is short, and it is more meaningful with those we love around us, including our beloved pets.

Another way we feel Home in our hearts is by remembering our roots. My parents were poor. They were in an arranged marriage, my dad with a previous marriage and his own baggage and my mom only thirteen years old, scared to death, and filled with some interesting ideas of motherhood and marriage. Despite their unusual union though, I was able to find strength in their survival and the things they taught us kids throughout the seasons in that long-ago country place. And I am who I am today simply because they were my parents. Thinking back and reflecting on those times, I am filled with gratitude for the sacrifices they made to keep their children fed, clothed, and all together.

Today, I feel Home every time I visit my mom. She has a way of just accepting me where I am at and letting me be who I am at the moment. In fact, she has always done that. It is one of the things which has given me the courage to do some of the things I’ve done such as move away to the big city when I was only twenty-two, get married at twenty-five, and write my first book. Over the years, she has provided meals even when my visits were a surprise. And, even though she no longer cooks like she used to, her food will always be the best of the best in my memory of memories.

What is querencia to you? Do you have a place in your life that provides safety, comfort, and peace? Is this something you are still looking or hoping for? Wherever you are at in your life, I wish you the best in achieving this feeling of love, hope, and peace. May the place you find or build be nurturing and supportive, encouraging and celebratory. And may you know without a doubt that this place cannot be touched by anything negative unless it is allowed. A place of safety and strength, your home should always be filled with what brings you happiness, joy, and contentment.

As we embrace and welcome the new year, may we take time to ensure our Home continues to bring us that feeling of warmth and genuine cheer. This month, do one thing that will add to your home’s joy. Either remove one item that is an eye-sore or add one thing you’ve been hankering for and place it in your kitchen, livingroom, or bedroom. Don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today to add to your home and heart’s peace and lovely enjoyment. Make your safe haven all that you want it to be.

January is already two-thirds past us. Use the last third to make your next month’s feeling of home even more precise.

Love & hugs, Virg