HOME is where the HEART is

What I planned as an overnight stay because of a dental appointment turned into a week-long stay-cation in Pagsanjan. It's a good thing that I have no urgent meetings to attend, thus I don't have to rush back to Manila. When in Pagsanjan, my return schedule is always indefinite, no fixed time or date. Maybe I missed my old place or maybe I just want to stay more with the family. Since I settled in my own place I rarely visit my hometown, hence in the occasional visits I always take advantage of spending time with my family, just watching TV together, cooking classic hometown dishes that I missed and sharing funny stories of our childhood again and again.

credit to the owner of this photo

For a week I stayed in my sister's home, which is just s few meters away from my parent's house. This was a chance to bond with my two other siblings. After college they opted to stay and work in the province, while me and my brother preferred to stay in the city. Occasionally they visit us in Manila, to dine out, watch a movie or to buy some stuff. There is a certain joy when the four of us are together. My fondest memories of us will be back in my room every Saturday morning. Back in college I go home every Friday (late) night from Manila, the following morning my brothers about 3 to 4 years old then will peek into my door to check if I'm already awake and the four of us will stay in my bed for maybe 30 mins wrestling, playing, in short "harutan" before we have breakfast.

We have two additional members of the family, and spending a whole week with them is just perfect especially with the charming little girl. She's really funny, smart and cute, I see her with a happy disposition in life, although she can be very stubborn at times. I also got to see and chat with my father for a week. I got to bond with a cousin too, we ate together, nap together and teased the little girl together.

I have my own private space, my current home sweet home, but there is something in Pagsanjan that I always want to go back to. Is it my childhood memories, is it my family, the memories of my Nanay, or my happy thoughts? We can go places, travel the world but we'll always go back to where we came from, because truly home is where the heart is.