Where do you belong?

Reading time: approx. 4 min

Do you know where you belong? Or have you never had to ask yourself this question?

Have you always felt like you belonged, felt at home, or felt rooted? "Having" to ask oneself this question might be a bit of an exaggeration in this context, because very few people probably "have" to.

Perhaps this is more of a reflection of our time, and also depends on the country you were born into – and whether you were blessed with more or fewer advantages because of it. I can and am allowed to ask myself this question because I have the opportunity to live in safety in the first place, to dedicate myself to poetic questions, to travel – meaning both physically and mentally. I have a vivid imagination that I can immerse myself in at any time, just like that. Without the help of drugs or similar substances. I have a body that carries me and takes me from A to B, a body that allows me to travel.

If we first look at the geographical "Where do I belong" in this context, the question feels rather secondary to me. For me, it is not primarily about the external. Of course, you can also ask this question introspectively, and in my eyes, it instantly transforms into a much more exciting question.

So, if I ask you the question: Where do you belong? And I mean this in connection with your inner life, your soul, or your spirit – whatever you wish to call it – what would the answer be?

Where do you belong? Where is your home?

For me, this has been a question for years, and I have not yet reached its full depth. And who knows, in the end, it might not even be a question, but rather a kind of statement, or perhaps simply a thoroughly ridiculous pastime, as well as a luxury.

But what do you do when this question lives inside you and perhaps wants to be lived too?

Art, in any form, helps me a lot to just immerse myself in this question for a moment, to let myself go, without having the need to really know it. To really understand it. My paintings thrive on these authentic moments with myself. On those moments in which this one question, "Where do I belong," is answered for a brief second. At least emotionally, without the pragmatic mind interfering.

Some time ago, I also painted a picture that was created during a course I attended. It was a small-group seminar that spanned over a month, with the theme "Inner Garden." A really wonderful experience with beautiful people. 

This overarching concept of the inner garden stayed with me and gave me valuable inspiration for a painting I created. So, I painted a simple, rather childlike scene of a house with a garden. My inner, mental garden with a house. I still have this picture as my desktop background because I love it so much. It created a kind of connection for me between the external and the inner question. Almost as if the process of drawing had given me the emotional answer, and the finished painting had given me the external answer. Unfortunately, I can't describe it any better right now, even though the course was over half a year ago.

It was one of the experiences last year that nourished me incredibly. Simply the aspect of feeling part of something. Connected with like-minded people and feeling well-supported by the way the whole thing was conducted. So fitting for the question "Where do I belong." Perhaps it is different places, people, feelings, situations, or the like that can answer this too. Just for specific moments in life. Like a puzzle piece.

Thank you very much for reading!

These posts are a part of my artistic journey, shared here with you.

If this insight resonated with you and you'd like to accompany me a little further on this path, you can support my studio work with a small contribution toward new colors or a creative coffee break.

Simply click the button below to contribute. Thank you for your kindness and support!