draining the car battery with my uncle

on being where you belong

Where does your breath feel lightest?

When do you breathe most easily?

When I round the corner and see my Nanny’s yellow house on top of that hill, my whole self relaxes.

I belong here.

This is my space.

This has been the place of my people for a couple of hundred years.

Driving in, there was an odd looking red headed dude walking in the middle of the road. It looked like he was rolling a joint. At first he seemed strange. Then I looked again. He looked kinda like me.

Perhaps he’s another cousin from that side of the family we don’t really speak to much.

I’ve found that in this community, I have a lot of distant connections to a lot of people.

All of this contributes to a sense I have of belonging here.

As I rounded the corner, I saw my uncle. I stopped. He stopped. We turned off our cars and started chin wagging.

Neither of us really parked in a smart way.

Other cars were coming in and out of the parking lot.

Some were gathering up their boats, others were registering in the office.

My uncle and…