H.O.M.E.S. Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Eerie, Superior. If you didn’t already have this little acronym in your memory tool box, now you’ll be able to be a motherfucking hero at your next trivia night when they ask about the Great Lakes.
If you take the periods out from between the letters, though, you’re left with “HOMES.” Not a single “home,” but plural; two, three, more. While having multiple places to call home is nothing new for most of us, this tribe has [no surprise here] made our connections to those homes insanely stronger.
Buuuut “Which November Project do you like better- NP-Boston or NPSD?”
I have been asked this question a whole bunch of times since the day I moved from Boston and entered the NPSD family 13 months ago. It’s like being asked, “Where do you feel more at home- where you grew up or where you live now?” or “What’s cuter- a chocolate lab puppy or a golden retriever puppy?” or “What yoga pose do you like better- Child’s Pose or Savasana?” YOU CAN’T CHOOSE!
When I first showed up to NP-Boston a little over 3 years ago, I did it to train in the off-season for my women’s club ultimate frisbee team. I didn’t know anyone, and I didn’t really make friends that I would be able to recognize outside of all our winter gear for months. All I knew was that the Harvard Stadium was relentless at kicking my ass and Brogan and Bojan would do something so fucking weird that I would have random chuckle outbursts to accompany my quivering legs for the rest of my Wednesdays. As the Boston winter thawed, I realized that going a week in between NP love and suffer fests was far too long. I was done with my early morning nursing clinical on Fridays, and I changed my yoga schedule so I wouldn’t teach early on Mondays. That’s when the sense of coming home to NP really set in. Three hours a week still felt like not enough, but the bonds that were cultivated in those early morning hours in as cold as -20 degree weather to as hot as 100+ degree weather were nothing short of family-building.
It was the stadium that served as a place to vent frustration, celebrate victory, push both physical and mental limits beyond what I could have been imagined, be goofy, cry because tears would mix in well with sweat, race my face off and feel stronger than ever before, cope with heartbreak, loss, and grief, chase people who were faster because I just wanted to spend more time in their energy circles, fall in love, and be a part of the positivity that bounced between the the concrete sections as much as the sound of a birthday “boom.” It was home. A home.
When I first went home-home to Minneapolis and NP was just getting started there, I convinced my best friend from junior high to come with me to the workout group that was starting to take over my social media posts. The 14 of us who showed up that morning stood kind of awkwardly in a circle introducing ourselves before the leaders introduced the workout. It felt nothing like NP Boston mornings with sometimes hundreds of folks bouncing together, yet the hugs, the positive energy, and the tenacity of those who showed up that Minnesota winter morning, was exactly the same. It was home. Another home.
When I had a college friend’s wedding in Madison, Wisconsin in June 2015, I thought it would be a good opportunity to get an NP-Milwaukee visit in, too, so I messaged DG to ask if he could set me up with someone to stay with. He simply responded, “You’ll stay with me.” I arrived on a Tuesday night, shared a few beers with him, his wife, and their two friends, and went to the Wednesday workout with him in the morning. DG and Meggie were headed to the airport to attend a wedding of their friends’ in Tahoe right after the workout, so DG had me drive his car home, take his dog on a walk, and lock up the house before I headed to Madison. I had never met him before, but it felt like I had acquired- you guessed it- yet another home.
NP-Madison, NP-Chicago, NPSF, NPDC have all been vessels to get a fun, free, workout in when visiting family and friends, but it is no secret that the soreness in our bodies after the workouts at NP tribes around the world is just as powerful as the fullness in our hearts from connecting with “strangers” that somehow feel like family at first meeting.
When I first showed up to NPSD while visiting my sister some time in the past 3 years at the Convention Center steps, I didn’t know anyone besides the #badassladygang leaders I had messaged on Facebook who welcomed me into the workout, the tribe, the lovefest that is NPSD. When I was feeling all the [sad-excited-nervous-eager-vulnerable-empowered-weird] feelings about leaving Boston after 4 years there and moving to a new city, I knew that the inevitably tough transition of starting a new chapter in my life in San Diego would be eased by the feeling of coming to a new home every Monday and Wednesday at 6:30am at a minimum.
In this year, I have had the high highs of exploring this incredible city, meeting new people, and not ever checking the weather, and the low lows that come with job searching, dealing with the notorious California Board of Nursing, being away from my 2-time National Championship-winning ultimate team, struggling through plantar fasciitis, and just trying to make it out there, ya know?! Also in this year, NPSD has been as solid of a rock as ever with endless warmth that only the San Diego sun can rival. You have been incredibly welcoming, generous, adventurous, and a fucking blast to be around both during and outside of Monday and Wednesday mornings. This community never ceases to amaze me, and I am so thankful for all the HOMES that November Project (read: each one of you humans out there) has built, decorated, and installed plumbing in all around this globe. Not just for me and my home collection, but for all of us who are better versions of ourselves when we are unconditionally supported, relentlessly challenged, and necessarily re-charged every week by the sense of home that is November Project.
– Shira Klane
IMPORTANT CORPORATE STUFF
- MONDAY at San Diego City College downtown. Exact pin to be dropped. Stay tuned to social media!
- HOLIDAY GIVEBACK – Sunday, December 17. SIGN UP for the Inclusive Community Challenge! Find a teammate, register on the Eventbrite page, then fill out the google doc and tell us your team and what you’ll be bringing to the Potluck!
- BE BRIGHT, SAN DIEGO.
