HOME TRUTHS: Sarah

Name: Sarah

Age: 20

Lives in: Melbourne

Please answer this question … I feel at home when I can retreat from the world, with the things and people I love.

What does home mean to you? Has this changed since the COVID-19 pandemic?

Growing up, my time would be divided equally between my father’s place and my mother’s place. Home was the place I’d go to at the end of the day, and that would change. Home was the bag I carried, heavy with the belongings I’d decided to take from one place to another. Becoming an adult, the idea of home has become less fluid in my mind. Home is not just the place I go to at the end of the day. Home is also the place I plan to stay in. If anything, COVID-19 has solidified the concept of home as less flexible, but also less hectic, in my mind.

Where’s home for you?

I currently live at my mother’s place. As it’s located in a sleeper suburb, I wasn’t too fond of it but now that everyone has to stay home I like it more. I know it can be grating having family always around, but I also don’t think we do much more together except for meals. I guess company can also mean simply coexisting, sometimes? I mostly enjoy not waking up to an empty house. There’s something about that experience that makes me feel lonely, and lazy.

What have you lost because of lockdown? Is there anything you’ve gained?

The course I’d been taking had to move online, which was not a pleasant experience. Aside from technical frustrations, I would eventually be overwhelmed by the sensory overload. I’ve put my next study plans on hold as a result. But I’ve been able to maintain my sleep schedule a lot better these days (or should that be nights?). I don’t think I’m going to enjoy adjusting my body clock to rising earlier for school or work once lockdown ends.

What’s the first thing you’ll do when there are no restrictions at all?

I miss public libraries. I’d love to be able to enter my local library again and browse for books. Most of all, though, I want to take a trip to State Library Victoria. Maybe sit and work a while in the La Trobe Reading Room. Maybe peruse the shelves, learn something surprising. The atmosphere and architecture are lovely.

 Interview Maria O’Dwyer Illustration Sonia Kretschmar