TEXARKANA MAGAZINE
GOOD EVENING TXK COLUMN BY BAILEY GRAVITT
A home away from home is a location where one does not reside, but feels as comfortable as they would in their own abode. When you think of your home away from home, maybe you think of your grandparent’s house. Maybe you think of a rented vacation home on the beach, a timeshare, or a cabin near a lake. My home is a safe place. It’s where I know without a shadow of a doubt, I can completely be myself without regard for what others will think, knowing I will be unconditionally loved by those around me, no matter what I do. So, my home away from home would have to match that same feeling. I feel immensely blessed to have grown up in a wonderful home made of tough love, prayer, encouragement, and fall scented candles. I was surrounded by my mom, two younger brothers, and my grandparents, who lived across the street from us my entire adolescence. When my friend Aubrey introduced me to Ali Deal in 2020, I had no idea I was walking into the place that would become my
home away from home. It possessed every important thing on which my own home was built (with the exception of fall-scented candles because, according to Ali, Bath & Body Works candles cause cancer). I’ve never had a longing to replace my own fabulous mother, but I find comfort in having a collective of adoptive moms. They are strong women who have willingly ushered me into their families and made me feel like I was a part of the fold from the very beginning. I instantly fell in love with Ali Deal’s family: her husband Cody, who came over to my house to rescue me after an exhausting day at work when my car wouldn’t start; her daughter Rosemary who allows me to experience what it would be like having a crazy little sister; and her sons, John Morris and James, who validate more and more for me every time I see them, I was never meant to be involved in anything involving a football, basketball, or baseball. Whether we’re curled up on the couch having deep four-hour conversations about God, quoting Real Housewives episodes, baking sugar-free cakes (that disgusts me because I’m a sugar addict), taking
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