As my high school years came to a close and I started searching for colleges, I knew what I wanted. I made the decision to apply to schools down south and looked at several in the Carolinas and Florida. I've lived by the water my entire life, so I when I arrived at a tiny liberal arts school on Florida's Gulf Coast, I fell in love. From there, I knew Florida would always be home.
Florida is unlike most states in that it has almost everything. There are beaches on both the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Orlando is home to places like Disney World and Universal Studios, attracting millions of tourists. There are alligators, rays and manatees. Depending on where you go, there are big cities, swamps, mangroves, suburbs and beaches. There aren't too many other places in the United States that have a little bit of everything like Florida does.
The first few months of living in Florida were a culture shock for me in the best way possible. I was exposed to entirely new lifestyle. I spent so much more time outside (and in a bathing suit) than I ever had at home. I moved in August, so it was unbearably hot and getting in the water was almost a necessity. While it cooled down after those first few August weeks, I could still go outside in a swimsuit for the rest of the year (with a few exceptions). When it was October and I was sitting on the beach, it became obvious to me how Florida attained the nickname "the sunshine state."
People constantly ask me if I miss having four seasons. Sure, I sometimes a miss a chilly fall day or jumping in a pile of leaves (and, admittedly, the first snow), but I wouldn't trade it. I live where most people vacation. I've never liked the cold, especially for extended periods of time, so Florida was the perfect fit for me.
There are so many aspects of Florida life that I've come to love. Among this long list of things are the sunsets. It's a mostly flat state, so nothing really gets in the way of a good sunset, especially if it's over the water. There's something relaxing about watching the daylight disappear over the horizon and knowing you'll get to wake up in the same place.
Another thing that will never get old for me is seeing the palm trees. The foliage isn't very diverse (at least not compared to where I grew up) and palm trees are everywhere—off highways, outside hotels and even in parking lots. They are one of the sure signs that you've landed someplace warm. Not only that, but I love the look of them.
On occasion, I get laughed at for loving Florida because most people consider it a vacation spot or claim that it's filled with old people (they aren't wrong), but I think I have it pretty good. At the end of the day, there's no other place I would rather call my new home.
