As I was growing up, I had it so set in my mind that I would go to college far away from home and absolutely nowhere else. I acted almost like it was the only choice that I had, and that the colleges in my hometown were made for people from other states to come to.
College is a weird concept as a child and for some reason, this is how I decided to grasp that concept. But as we all know, we grow up and learn a little more about life.
College being one of those things as we enter high school and it becomes to be a very real question as to where you plan to attend school after this is all said and done. I had my heart set on the University of Arkansas but wasn't too much of a fan of the campus once I had toured it.
My second choice was Missouri State Univerity in Springfield, Missouri. The town that I basically grew up in, since that's where everyone went for shopping, eating, and pretty much any entertaining activity. This is something that I never really expected from myself, but after I toured the campus I absolutely fell in love and knew that this was the place for me.
I had also made the decision to live on campus and start fresh despite living thirty minutes away and knowing plenty of people from my high school attending the same school. It has worked out for me so well here, though there are things that my friends from hours away talk about that I will never understand, and here are just a few.
1. Homesickness
This is a word that you hear a lot on a college campus, but it's not necessarily something you can feel when you're from the town. Now when I say this, I'm not saying that I don't miss my family, I'm saying that it's nearly impossible to be homesick when you are technically home.
When you know the town like your back of your hand: the best restaurants to eat at, the best movie theatre, the most entertaining thing to do in the down, and the sketchy part of the town, then you know it all and that is your home. 'You haven't been misplaced at all and don't truly know the feeling that they have of not seeing their family and friends, and having the feeling of being familiar and understanding where they are.
2. Making Friends
When you come to college, you sort of has this fresh start. Obviously, you haven't just cut everyone off, but you're not there to see and talk to them every day like you did in high school. You come to college and you're a college town hoping for a new start and some new people that you will consider friends for the rest of your life.
But when you go to college in your hometown, your entire life is still right there. You walk around campus and see two people that you went to high school with because it was a convenience for everyone to go there.
You go to Walmart on a random weekday and run into a friend, an old colleague, maybe even a high school teacher, because that is where you have lived your whole life. Making friends at college in your hometown isn't as fearful a thing as it is when you move away.
3. Hometown Meals
Let me explain this one a little bit. When I say hometown meals, I mean that one meal that you hear people from a specific place talk about all the time. You could call it the "delicacy" of that certain town. This could be anything from Kansas City BBQ to Louisana jambalaya because I have heard it all.
When you stay in your hometown you're introduced indirectly to a lot of food that other people around you have had their whole lives. You get to learn about these new restaurants and dishes and hear all about the traditional food that they eat on holidays and it becomes a learning experience in its own.
And while you may feel like you're missing out on some of these restaurants and dishes, you get to physically take these friends to your favorite restaurants to try your favorite dishes and explain the memories behind them. So I think the locals win this round.
4. Drives Home
If there is one thing that I hear a lot in college, it's complaints about the drive home. Most of the friends that I have made in college so far live at least three or more hours away which I will admit is a bit of a long drive, especially when you're driving it by yourself.
But when you go to college close to home, you don't have to experience the long drives home every weekend and having to leave early in the afternoon just to make it back to school at a decent time and find some good parking.
Again I believe this is around won by the locals, but there are so many pros and cons to long drives home. Sometimes driving can be therapeutic and you can just turn on your favorite playlist and drive.
Other times though, depending on weather and traffic. There have been countless times that I have been thankful that I can hop on a single road and make it all the way home in thirty minutes. But sometimes I wonder what it's like to go to college three hours away.
