Summer is a season of homeland visits for many expats. How it can help foster a sense of belonging? Hungary, Ukraine, France, Croatia, Pakistan, US, Poland, and Australia. A few countries, both my clients and friends, visited in the past weeks, shared stories about and nurtured their soul with a special sense of belonging.
The place where you belong
Expats live away from their homelands where they were born, raised, and socialized, where they understand the world without explanation needed, where they know the name of the plants and flowers, where the jokes are natural, and where the places have memories older than their phones' storage.
"I met sea and family" - because we're not just seeing our people, we're also returning to the familiar nature, we're back to taste meals, and do things that we don't do elsewhere. Kin is not only people, kin is all that are our relations, that we share the amazing experience of life with. By simply visiting these places, and connecting with these people, we're nurturing this part of our identity.
If you don't have a deep and intimate relationship with some of your family members, it can still be a valuable time to your soul. Let go of your expectation and immerse yourself into the experiences. Take a walk in your childhood neighbourhood, go and eat an ice cream with a family member, and take in the experience with all of your senses. It may not be about the exact thing you choose doing, it's more about finding peace of mind in the familiar.
I was in my grandmothers garden when I noticed a particularly delicious piece of peach 🍑 on the top of a tree. With the help of my father, I climbed the tree and picked that sun-kissed beauty. The next morning, I hiked to the top of Budapest and had it for breakfast while simply enjoying life sitting on a straw bale. Simple moments that are placing us back to being connected to our roots, that comfort us and bring us the sense of the familiar.
What and who belongs to your kin?
In which simple ways can you nurture your connection to your roots?