A Visit to a Former Home

For the first time in a LONG time, C and I actually got to spend a Saturday together. Due to his crappy part-time job which he has to work while finishing up school, he very rarely gets time off to spend with me on weekends, so this was a big deal to me.

I already had plans to attend a warehouse sale for a store that sold horse-related products and he gladly decided to tag along with me. So we woke up early and made the trek across the big city as the sale was of course, on the opposite end of the city from where we live. The sale was great and I purchased everything that was on my list and nothing more. I was very proud of myself!

Since we were already on that end of the city and not far from where my grandfather is buried, we decided to drive over and say hi. Anytime someone from the family is in that general area, we try to stop in and check on things and make sure is all good. Several years ago, his grave was actually sinking and falling off it's base, so we like to keep an eye on it, and of course say hi. I never knew my grandfather because he passed 5 years before I was born, so it is always kind of nice to stop by and say hi.

When we were done at the cemetery, I looked at the time and it was only 10:30. We were only 20 minutes away from my University town so my mind started thinking and planning. I have always wanted to show C my campus from my University days, and especially in the fall when the leaves were different colours. He agreed it was an optimal time to go, so we continued down the highway.

Oh how I miss my former home.

The University of Guelph.

When I was there, working on my degree, I LOVED my school and the campus, but I never realized that down the road I would have such an emotional attachment towards the place. Prior to this weekend, I had not been to Guelph and on campus since '06, the year I graduated. So that moment when we drove into campus on Saturday I was almost surprised how my heart started going and I instantly felt this overwhelming feeling of joy and comfort and HOME. I really truly MISSED this place!

Although it was a little windy and chilly, the campus was exactly how I remembered it. As soon as we entered the University Center, which is like the main building, it honestly felt like I had never left. The feeling I had was almost surreal, and I loved every moment of it.

There was so much that I wanted to show C, but due to limited time, we just made the general walk around campus. I brought him to 'my' building, which was where 90% of my classes were held, thus most of my time during those four years was spent in this building. Everything was the same, even the smell. He thought it was kind of a funky smell, but again to me, it was home. It was incredible. We also walked by my old residence building where I lived during my first year and then made a stop in the campus store where he bought me a new U of G travel mug.

When we finished out walking tour and our lunch, I didn't want to leave. But, I knew it was time. As much as that place feels like home to me still, it was my home of my past, not my future. It was the home that helped enable me to be able to provide for my future and I love it for that. I hope to continue to visit this former home of mine periodically over the upcoming years, and can only hope that this feeling of home that I had when on campus never fades.