"The word 'topophilia' is a neologism, useful in that it can be defined broadly to include all of the human being's affective ties with the material environment. These differ greatly in intensity, subtlety, and mode of expression. The response to environment may be primarily aesthetic: it may vary from the fleeting pleasure one gets from a view to the equally fleeting but far more intense sense of beauty that is suddenly revealed. The response may be tactile, a delight in the feel of air, water, earth. More permanent and less easy to express are the feelings that one has toward a place because it is home, the locus of memories, and the means of gaining a livelihood" - Yi-Fu Tuan, Topophila, p. 93
What is a place that you love? A special area in nature that brings back strong memories, a place you love to visit because of the things that have happened there. Maybe it's a built-up space, like the home of a grandparent or an amazing restaurant? Maybe it's a natural location like a beach, mountain vista, bike trail, or fishing spot. Or in between, like a cabin. Maybe you'd like to write about your earliest experience with a natural world, a powerful memory in nature. What is the inventory of this location -- the topography, components, objects, characteristics? What do your senses remember? Consider the visually elements, but also smells, textures, and sounds. What is the story of this place... what is your history with it? Think about this and write leave a comment below with your response. Start with a word document -- do your writing there (no more than one page) and then copy/paste into a blog comment here. You can also submit a hard copy if there is some reason you do not want your writing piece online.
lol
ReplyDeleteI used to live near an elementary school. Around the perimeter of the property there was a bunch of trees and there was one closest to my house that was particularly good for climbing. I used to go there a lot with friends or just by myself to get away from things in my stressful life (because childhood and early adolescence is very stressful). This tree had branches low enough to grab and swing your legs up onto and they were strong enough that they wouldn’t break under your weight. The tree wasn’t something private; everyone knew about it. All the neighborhood kids would climb up there and see who could climb the highest. It wasn’t very tall compared to other trees but it was a place to get away. It was a pine tree and whenever you would climb down you would have tree sap all over your clothes and in your hair. I remember always getting scratched or poked by the needles and the bark. And if you climbed really high in the tree, you could see things that people have carved into the bark. Names, initials of couples, that sort of thing. If you sat on the lowest branches during recess, you could scare the kids running by if you jumped down or yelled at them. I haven’t been back to the tree in a few years ever since I moved. I miss it, and I do consider going back soon.
ReplyDeletepart 2
DeleteHome to me is the Hart. I lived there the majority of my life. The people were great, everyone in the neighborhood knew each other and we all knew the latest gossip between us. I don’t really know anyone in my new neighborhood because I live in a new subdivision and most of the houses are unoccupied. The road isn’t even on any maps yet. We mostly talk to all the construction workers and what they’re up to but they don’t live there. I miss the Hart though. That will always be home to me.
Many say you won’t know true happiness until the birth of your child but I discovered it the moment I stepped into Books And Company. I found the locally owned bookstore and cafe for the first time three years ago. I had just finished an art class with a close friend and we decided to explore while waiting for our rides. We both fell in love. The smell of ink and chai tea greeting us as we walked in put us both at ease. Since that day I have returned and gained many more precious memories.
ReplyDeleteSeeing friends perform live, having countless study dates, and running to the cafe as an escape from horrid dates have all been experiences I will never forget. Books And Company has been my haven. It’s allowed me to surround myself with other creative minds and feel safe. How could I not be at home at a place that’s tightly packed with books, hipsters, and lattes. I know that if I’m ever feeling down I have a place to escape.
Many individuals might describe their dream peace setting as on the beach or relaxing with friends. Personally in my dream setting this is not the case. My dream location is on my deck eating a heaping plate of nachos. Perhaps if I’m feeling crazy I’ll put on some tunes to enhance the experience.
ReplyDelete-Hannah
A place I feel very connected to is Castlegar. I grew up there, and visit it every year. Not, only do we have family, but I have spent countless hours, hiking skiing and biking around there. Every time I visit, I have strong memories of the time when I lived there and of growing up and learning about the world. My first memories are from the old house we had there, and walking from the house down to the river, or going with my dad to the collage and helping him out with his beekeeping. Lots of my family still lives there, and they keep me connected to that place. We lived there because that’s where my dad grew up and that’s where he wanted to go to school, also so we could be close to my grandmother.
ReplyDelete-Morgan H
part 2
DeleteHome to means the place where you return every night, or the place you go when you have nothing to do. I guess that I connect mostly to the present, because I don't really remember when I was little. Home is a place where you have spent lots of time and feel comfortable.
-Morgan H
A place that invokes strong memories for me is Whistler Village and the mountains surrounding it. The most important connection between me and this location is the location itself, the scenery of the place is just extraordinary. The village itself feels like a place of wonder, a mix of modern style and nature with a very comfortable feel, the surrounding nature embracing the village in a collage of elegance. Not only the village itself is wonderful, but the climate itself is near perfect for me. The mix of temperate rainforest and alpine is one of the best imaginable to me. It is different enough from Prince George’s climate with the temperate rainforest and mountains, but retains some of the aspects of Prince George to keep it feeling like home away from home. The cozy buildings and bustling style of the village is a great contrast to Prince George’s slow lifestyle, which is something that I would love to adapt into my life. The people there are also a great addition on why Whistler is my favourite place, everyone there is very nice and laid back, just trying to have a good time in the beautiful country in and around Whistler.
ReplyDelete-Jeremy W
Pt. 2 Home is a place of being, living and connecting with family, friends and environment; it is not only a physical place but also a mental state of being. Home is where you feel safe and have a strong sense of belonging. To me Prince George is the only home I have known, and the time period I feel most connected to is the technological boom that has happened in the last 20 years. My entire life has been surrounded by technology and I have used technology nearly every day in the last 10 years of my life.
DeleteMy favorite place that I love is my cabin out at Clucluz Lake. My cabin is just a big open lot with a cabin right in the middle of the lot. We have a trailer on it also. We have a dock in the water with two boats on it and 2 sea-dos. It always smells like campfire and good food. All you can usually hear is people laughing and boats in the water and the sound of the campfire crackling. My cabin has been in my family for a long time and hopefully it stays in my family for my kids to eventually enjoy like I do. There is always something to do out there no matter the weather. We can go swimming or out on the boat or just hang out around the fire and laugh with our friends. We always have so many different people out there from friends to family to new people we are just meeting. Everyone is always friendly and willing to help you out with anything you need. My cabin is my favorite place and I’m sure it will always be.
ReplyDelete-kristen k
Home to me means somewhere that you could be comfortable with yourself and the others around you. My personal geography is the connection I have to Prince George. I am connected to Prince George because I was born here and all my family is in Prince George. I connect the most to these when I’m with my family in my house in Prince George. When we are all together I am not wanting to leave my house and I’m connected to it and I’m comfortable with everything around me.
Delete-Kristen K
My favorite place in the whole world is the stream at the top of the peak to peak mountain in whistler bc. The hike to get there isn’t the most easy hike, there is a lot of up hill and tree roots protruding from the ground that you have to avoid unless you’re looking for a twisted ankle.the hike is more then worth it though. The stream is so serene and the atmosphere you get when you sit by it is like pure euphoria, I think it’s my favorite place because you can’t see it all year round you can only see it in early spring just going into fall when the leaves are changing from a bright orange to a light green. The first time I encountered the stream I was 11 years old and I was tired after like a 4 hour long hike and then I heard the water flowing and and I went and sat by it with my sister and fell in love with how at home I felt. I’ve never felt like that anywhere else in my whole life and I cherish every moment I get to spend there. It will forever be my home away from home.
ReplyDelete-Felicity C.
Part 2
DeleteHome means that you can be who you are and you feel the most comfortable. Generally you are surrounded by people that you love and people that love you. Home can be anywhere from a mall to a cabin that has been passed down through generations, home can be anywhere with the right people and feelings.
My cabin is a place that is very special to me. It’s a place where my family gets together and has made many memories. My grandpa’s dad bought the piece of property on Tabor Lake to pass down through the generations. There are 3 cabins on the property right off of the water. Waking up on the porch and looking out the window hearing the water crash up against the cement blocks is one of my favorite reoccurring memories. My family members from out of town always come out during the summer and we all take time off work to go stay out there with them and catch up. With so much to do out there it’s never a bad time to go. On hot days we have 2 boats to go water skiing, tubing, wakeboarding etc. even including a water sleigh. We have many kayaks and a floating island to swim out to. At night we usually load up the boats and take a slow drive around the lake, sit by the fire and tell stories and listen to music. On colder days we bake and play card games in the cabin. There was a very steep dirt hill that we used to have that my cousins and I used to take turns running up and seeing how far we could get before sliding back down. It now has huge rocks piled up against in that we climbed, and now our younger cousins climb.
ReplyDelete-Jenna F
To me home is somewhere that you feel safe and comfortable. It is somewhere that you can be open and be yourself. My personal geography is my connection that I have to Prince George. I was born here and have lived here my whole life. My mom has grown up here as well. Most of my family is from here and it’s a place where friends and family from out of town come back it visit. It’s a place with many connections for me and my family.
Delete-Jenna F
A special area to me is Dutch Lake, located in Clearwater British Columbia. I would go there all the time when I lived in Clearwater. It was a place to just hang out and have fun with friends and family. It had a nice sandy beach for you to walk on without hurting your feet. They had a big slide right in the middle of the beach for the little kids to play on. The best time to go to Dutch lake was in the summer because it was very hot and nice to go swimming. Clearwater was a very touristy town so people all around the world would come to the beach to go swimming. During the summer you could go fishing on the lake with your boat or sit on the dock and cast your line out. In the middle of the lake there was a small island you could swim to or go boat, me and my friends would always go to the island because there wasn’t as much people there. The smell of the beach was so refreshing and just made you feel healthy. The glimmering sun off the lake was blinding on a sunny day. Jumping in the water was the hardest part to do, you would either get pushed in or slowly go in the water wasn’t the warmest at times. Running down the dock was fun but sliding was quite scary because lots of people slipped on the wet dock.
ReplyDelete1)
Home to me is where you can be yourself and not feel judged. Home is where you feel welcomed or loved. You don’t need to be loved by someone else just love yourself and feel free. Home could be outside in the woods literally anywhere you feel comfortable and in peace. Home could be very simple things it does not have to be a specific place for me it could be anywhere. That is what the word home means to me.
mark timms
Ryan Moonie My Favorite Place Sept.14.2016
ReplyDeleteMy favorite place to be is the gym not any particular gym, any gym the feeling of self-improvement is awesome, what makes it special is whatever your thinking about or anything that is worrying you once you enter the gym all of that goes away , the people, the music, the weights, sounds of the weights hitting the ground or people grunting /heavy breathing. I love the feeling of pushing my limit and gasping for air at the end of a workout, it’s very relaxing to me and helps me sleep, tired muscles and covered in sweat the feeling of completion , my favorite gym would have to be the unbc sports center because it’s really big and open and you’re not crowded around people all the time so many different spots to workout, listening to music to pump you up, the best feeling is after a really good workout when your breathing heavy and that’s all your focusing on and drinking some nice cold water to cool down.
1) Home to me is anywhere you feel safe and protected and comfortable home doesn’t have to be in a house it could be a place where you feel happy or impowered
Albert Head CSTC is on Vancouver Island and the ocean is about half an hour away from the main part of the camp. I went there every summer for four years. The main camp consists of three parade squares, a few big buildings, and the barracks. Most of the buildings are covered in moss and have peeling paint. Wherever you are, you are always only a short walk away from the forest. The base has a wildlife population including deer, who are often wandering around early in the morning. The main road goes past the orchard and the survival camps, and ends at the supply building. A little path from the supply building takes you down to the Albert Head lagoon. During my third summer, I sat there with the group of people who I had just spent 6 weeks with, and our camp leaders told us we had passed their expectations and they told us we were capable of doing anything we wanted.
ReplyDeleteI like Albert Head because of the environment. The forest is green and full of life. I like the location because it’s just far away enough from Prince George to feel like you’re going on an adventure, but you’re still close to home. Most important to me are the memories and experiences I’ve had there. I’ve been inspired by others and had the chance to inspire people younger than me. Every time I visited, I learned new skills and improved myself. Albert Head is special to me because every experience I had there contributed to my growth as a person, and I know the many people who’ve been there have had a similar experience.
1.To me home is a place where you feel safe. Every place or person I’ve associated as a home made me feel comfortable.
-Elisha B