I’m Sharon Jones, a Northern Irish writer and educator, and this is my Writing Home.
Home is a place to begin; a place to set out from, and return to again after adventures. Home is a place of nurturing, of restoration, and hospitality. Life itself is a kind of journey towards our true home. But along the way there is important work to do. The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah instructed his fellow countrymen in exile to:
“Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce…seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you” (Jeremiah 29: 5-7).
Reading and writing are integral to our human story of dwelling and journeying; perhaps just as vital as building physical houses, and planting physical gardens.
J.R.R. Tolkien in The Hobbit depicts Elrond’s home, the “Last Homely House”:
“His house was perfect whether you liked food, or sleep or work, or storytelling, or singing, or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all.”
I’d like my Writing Home to be a bit like the Last Homely House: a place of kindling for things beautiful and good.
I hope you enjoy your visit!