Don't get me wrong, my childhood was pretty great, but my parent's divorce definitely had an impact on my upbringing. Yes there were many negative impacts, but there were also plenty of positive impacts. My parents got divorced when I was 4 and split up when I was 2, so I don't really have any memory of them together, Which I think is easier than kids that have to go through their parents getting divorced at an older age.
The best thing I got out of my parents divorcing was I was able to be raised in two very different lifestyles. I lived with my mom in a small suburb of Chicago, where we were close enough to the city we were able to go events and take part in activities that made me feel appreciative of all of the different cultures in the world. I have many memories of going to different festivals where I got to meet new people and learn about so many different things.
Then on the weekend and on school breaks I went to northwestern Wisconsin, where my dad lived on a farm. Whenever I was at my dad's house, I spent most of my time outdoors, hunting, fishing, gardening, and pretty much anything else where I could get my hands dirty. I also appreciate being exposed to country living because it taught me how to take care of myself at a young age. Out of all of my friends at school I was the only one that had ever gutted a deer! I always thought that was pretty cool. The thing I enjoyed most about the country was the slower paced lifestyle. Since I knew the country and city lifestyle I realized that people in the city seem to take the little things for granted, compared to people in the country. Sometimes we need to take a break from the craziness in our life and appreciate the little things in life. That's probably the biggest thing I took away from growing up in the country.
Although it may seem like I had the best of both worlds having a parent by the city and one in the country, it definitely had its hard moments. It was especially hard for me seeing my friends with both of their parents living together because I only saw my dad every other weekend. Most parents get divorced and still live close to each other, but after my parents divorced my dad moved back to Wisconsin, where he was from, which was five hours away from where my mom and I lived. I remember all throughout middle school and high school I always had a suitcase on my bedroom floor because I was always either packing to go to my dad's or putting off unpacking from my last visit with him. Now that I'm in college, I really appreciate living in the same place during the school year because I don't have to deal with going back and forth between my parents' houses.
Going back and forth between my parents also really affected my emotions because I was almost always missing the one I wasn't with, especially my dad, because I didn't get to see him on an everyday basis. Even now, when I'm 20 years old and I come home for the summer, I have a hard time going back and forth because it's just so physically and emotionally draining. That being said, yeah, it can be hard at times, but I wouldn't change my upbringing for anything. I have great memories from my childhood and my parents raised me to be the strong, independent woman I am today.
