Coming Home

A real life experience and a sobering surprise for a WWII veteran returning to the United States after having served in Europe for about 18 months. Having been notified that it was his turn to be released from service, he was sure that he was going to the home he left two years earlier. Upon returning, he was faced with the reality that the home was not his and there was no room for him. Although not stated, the message was, Sorry Buster, you dont live here anymore. What happened? It is generally assumed that one has a home, a physical shelter where you hang your hat, or where you are a member of a household with either the given rights of residency or other qualifying reason(s). Without the legitimacy of an assumed status in a home, does any metaphor describing a destination or objective, such as coming home, make it a rite of passage? Despite the object lesson, the veteran courageously dealt with it and moved on achieving a better life than was anticipated or foreseen in his childhood home. Could this story be a message, lesson, or guidance, for parents, or is it a sobering reality of rights? Despite an upsetting experience, a last minute compromise and the veterans tenacity, allowed him a temporary residence that gave him an opportunity to adjust to the changed landscape.