PORTVILLE, N.Y. — Are you familiar with the term déjà vu? From the French, it is translated “already seen,” and having a transitory sensation of already lived a totally identical situation at some point in the past. Statistics show 97% of people have had such an experience.

When a friend recently invited me and a couple others to her new home for lunch, I didn’t realize it would be an afternoon of déjà vu. My friend and her husband decided it was time to downsize and purchased a manufactured home a bit smaller than their residence of many years.

As I walked in the door, things felt vaguely familiar. We took a tour and I knew what it was: Their home was like the one I left behind in Michigan, only in a reverse layout. Soon, I was sitting at a beautiful kitchen table and gazing through the blinds out two big corner windows. I was looking for something, which turned out to be a long Michigan driveway and connecting highway. That’s when it dawned on me.

This house may have been the reverse pattern of the one I last lived in, but it was the EXACT layout of another one. My husband and I spent some time of indecision over a few years, which prompted a few moves back and forth between Michigan and New York. One of those times, we purchased a brand new manufactured home, then had it moved to some acreage in the country.

We ended up making another move later, but this was the house I was “experiencing” there at that table, right down to the kitchen cupboards with a pretty stained-glass pattern. There was one major difference, besides location. My friend’s house was much tidier. Housekeeping was never my strong suit. As I sat there, my mind wandered in reminiscence of times shared with my late husband. It made me a little melancholy.

I recently went to the theater to see the new Tom Hanks movie. It’s called, “Here,” and is about a home and its many residents. I have to admit, I got a bit lost (confused) with flashbacks depicting different families who’d lived in the house. By the end, however, the message resonated. It made a statement about life and how fast it whizzes by! I might see it again to confirm what I think I saw.

I’ve been dreaming a lot lately. I have insomnia, but fall asleep (finally) some nights about 3 or 4 a.m. for just a couple hours. My dreams have been very vivid. They’ve also been full of questions within them, queries I am posing to someone I can’t see. The other night, I was busy driving some difficult terrain and suddenly stopped and looked around. “Where am I?” I asked. I didn’t get an answer and I kind of think a dream like that mirrors the state of mind we may be experiencing. I can sometimes ask that question when I’m awake in an existential way, like, “Have I lived a good life, helpful to others?”

A few nights ago, however, I asked, “Is this my home?” I remember adding, “Is it the Happy Hollow Road?” as I remembered one of my many residences. I’ve lived in several states and have moved over 20 times in my life, so at any point, any of them could pop up in the dream. I’m often dreaming of moving through a house full of just-arranged furniture, hoping THIS one will be THE ONE where we’ll stay.

I dream often of my childhood home on the mountaintop in Rock City. It was basically a shack, as both my sister and I have come to remember, but we never felt poor. It was likely the most secure home we knew. It’s no longer there, actually. A trailer sits on the site. But in the

dreams, I’m back! I go through the rooms and I remember my childhood and people I have lost. My Grandma. My beloved Daddy who died so young. My mom.

Then, my mind tries to figure it out. I ponder, in the dream, all the places I’ve lived, the good things about them and the not-so-good. When I come back to my favored Rock City home, there is this great sense of relief. It’s mine now! I’m back! Everything will be all right!

I suppose a counselor or therapist might be able to make something of such dreams, but it’s not really too hard for me to self-analyze, at least to some extent. We live in what can be a troubled world. We don’t always feel safe and secure. We go through life with a hunger for that. Many of us get to try out different places throughout our lives, while I know some live in or near where they grew up.

I think dreams help me search for something I can’t quite name. By faith, however, I know a day will come when I’ll get the answer and peace I seek when God says, “Welcome home!” And I’ll know THIS IS THE HOME I’ve been looking for.

(Contact Deb Wuethrich at deborahmarcein@gmail.com.)