“There’s No Place Like Home”

     “There’s no place like home”, said Judy Garland as Dorothy in the 1939 classic film, “The Wizard of Oz”.   As we continue in this crazy time of shelter in place, I find myself thinking a lot about home as it refers to my “Home” Golf Course.

     Although over the last few months our travel has been limited, we have been fortunate that our golf courses have been open during this time.  Prior to the pandemic we had plans of traveling around the U.S. in our RV while playing golf.  So we never thought about joining a home course.  (By the way – we still have plans to travel the U.S. in our RV and play golf; they’ve just been put on hold for a bit.)  But finding ourselves in the same location for an extended period of time has encouraged us to look at the advantages of finding our home course.  

Hone Your Skills

     There are many potential benefits to becoming part of a local golf club.  At the top of the list is the chance to improve your game.  Most clubs offer unlimited use of practice facilities.  You can hone your golfing skills with the local knowledge of the course – knowing where to miss, how far to carry or drive through a fairway, and especially how to read the greens. 

Flexibility

     Flexibility is about playing as many or as few holes as you want at no additional charge.  If you have caught bad weather or were unable to finish the round due to pending darkness – as a member, that’s never a problem.  

Sense of Belonging

     Having a “Home” Course fosters a sense of belonging.  Us humans are fundamentally social, and we thrive on experiencing a sense of belonging.  Whether it’s to meet new people, make new friends or find golfing pals – being associated with a “Home” Course can help you connect with other members.  You will have the opportunity to meet new people with similar interests and develop a regular group to golf with.

     Thinking about this has had me wondering about how it applies to my life.  Is it true?  Is there really No Place like Home?  Most of us can probably name at least one place we feel an emotional connection to.  But you probably don’t realize just how much a place can influence your sense of who you are, or how essential it is for your psychological well-being.  I know plenty of people who feel that home is best.  They rely on the familiarity of things, being close to family and the sense of belonging as reasons to believe.  

     As someone who has lived all over the world for the last 35 years, and has called many places home, it is hard to really relate to the main theme or reason of thinking there is no place like home.  For 22 years, home was wherever the U.S. Navy sent me.  I remember the moment I realized that my first assignment overseas with the Navy had become my “home” – that familiar place I found comfort in.  Yes, I still loved and missed my family home, but I realized it was never the case of one or the other.  My heart had simply expanded to make room for both.  Since then I’ve moved and found more places to call “home”.   

    While stationed in Spain, the town of Rota, located in the Province of Cadiz, Andalusia, was home and the Rota Golf course was our “Home Course” for three years.  When the Navy sent us to Jakarta, I embraced Indonesia’s massive capital with its historic mix of cultures – Javanese, Malay, Chinese, Arab, Indian and European – with open arms and considered it home and our home course was Gading Raya Golf Club.  A posting in Hawaii taught us what it means to be “Ohana” and we felt that family connection at Navy-Marine Golf Course, just one mile from Pearl Harbor National Memorial. 

    During my second career, home was wherever the U.S. Government sent us.  While assigned to the sovereign island city-state of Singapore we didn’t have a “Home Course” per say – but what we did have was one heck of a golf group that we considered family!  There wasn’t a weekend that went by that we weren’t up at the crack of dawn traveling to Johor in southern Malaysia with this group to play a round at Palm Resort Golf and Country Club.  Our last assignment with the U.S. Government found us calling Prague, Czech Republic home.   It was during this time that we became part of the BIGs family.  (BIGs – Bohemian Invitational Golf society) This established golf society for locals and Expats based in and round Prague was just what we were looking for in a “home” connection, and we felt right at home among this wonderful group of golfers over our four years of calling Prague home.        

    With each move I’ve experienced challenges, but I have also seen great growth.  I understand myself in new and different ways.  I make new friends and keep the old, and I now have favorite golf courses in cities across the world.              

My Reads from the Reds:  Wherever we play golf, or live, we will find…..there is No One Place like Home.

Fairways and Greens – We are 18 Holes and Counting. Written by Kathy Festa