Welcomed Home

My eyes are glued to the GPS. Only 100km to go...50...10...Now we're looking out for our street, our house. Callum, Charlotte and I are coming home.

We've turned onto our street. My eyes drink in the familiar sights: the houses I've passed, day after day, the car, the people. Everything looks different after four days away.

There it is! Home, with our cars outside. Will anyone be expecting us? Will they be watching for us? Or will we take them by surprise? No! They're expecting us. Sophie and Gemma-Rose stand by the post box, waving and grinning.

They have our doors open before the engine stops. We're rushed inside the house, leaving our bags in the car. Cats gather under foot, their soft fur brushing against our legs. Mum and Dad come out and we have hugs all round.

"We did all the jobs while you were away," Gemma-Rose says proudly. "I wrote rosters every day."

"The cats missed you," Sophie chimes in. "They were so grumpy while you were gone."

"We missed you," is all Mum says.

I smile and hug everyone all over again. It feels so good to be home, to see everything that's familiar, to know that everything will be normal again. It's good to go away, see different things, meet different people, but nothing away can possibly beat the comforts of home.