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The last leg of our summer trip found us in familiar territory: southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona. Several members of my family moved out to the San Simon Valley over a dozen years ago and we love visiting them; not only for their wonderful company but for the gorgeous views. The rhyolitic Chiricahua Mountains dominate the southern skyline while the unsettled Peloncillo Mountains meet the sky to the north. Our weekend visit was a quiet and pleasant affair, mostly just lingering over meals and catching up on each others’ lives.

About mid-day on a Sunday we left on our RV’s last road trip of the year—we were heading home. Odd word, home. It seems to have several different levels of meaning. In the most concrete sense (a house, apartment, or other shelter that is the usual residence of a person, family, or household) our home was wherever we parked our RV. Even in the emotional sense our RV certainly fits the meaning of home: “the place in which one’s domestic affections are centered” or “any place of residence or refuge.” Those definitions may be technically correct but during these past few years of travel we have discovered that home isn’t just the building in which we live.

Of the definitions, this one comes closest to what we think of as home: “an environment offering security and happiness.” Though it too falls short. We had inklings of this before we hit the road but it was difficult for us to put it into words. Now we know that home is far more than a physical structure it is also a feeling, a sense of belonging. Part of what makes a person feel that they belong are relationships—not only with friends and family, but everyday interactions with neighbors, people at the park, or at the library. Personal experiences with a place (and their subsequent memories) also figure in the home equation for us.

So when we returned to our property in Tucson that Sunday afternoon we truly felt we were coming home. We both have strong ties to the Old Pueblo, not only through a myriad of relationships but through years of associated memories.

As soon as we had the RV all hooked up we eagerly toured our property to check on it. Happily things were in great shape, nothing much had changed during our three month absence. There weren’t even very many weeds since Tucson suffered through one of its worst monsoon seasons in years. The National Weather Service considers most of Arizona to be in a “Severe Drought” with the Tucson area a good three inches behind in annual rainfall. A few inches may not sound like much to those of you in wetter climes, but when you only get roughly ten inches a year missing three inches is a huge deal.

Except for the sudden fluke of a cold winter-like storm that swept through in the middle of the month October’s weather was warm and sunny. At times perhaps a bit too warm? 99 degrees in October for crying out loud! Shouldn’t complain though—it did encourage us to get outside and work on the yard as well as tackle the much needed second coat of paint on the trim and other projects. The local home improvement stores love to see us!

Of course, it wasn’t all work and no play; we did set aside time to spend catching up with friends and family. As usual there was plenty to talk about—it’s amazing how much can change in a person’s life in a few months. I was also fortunate enough to score a seat at the Questing Workshop that was held in Tucson at the end of the month. For me Questing is one of those things that I wish I had known about sooner, but better late than never! A busy month, a good month—it’s great to be back home.

Photos: View our photographs for this post: So Nice to Be Home.