With midterms around the corner, it seems everyone is getting a bit nostalgic. We miss the simpler times before job applications and exams. Or maybe it’s missing the people who make us smile we don’t see enough anymore. We could be missing home cooked meals, or maybe your favorite restaurant you went to every week. Whatever you’re missing, no matter if you call home across the country or just a short drive away, hometowns will always hold a special place in our hearts.
1. To my family.
Thank you for making me lose my sanity, as well as making me sane. Coming home to home cooked food, my crazy siblings, a hug from mom and an inspirational speech from dad seems to always wash away any stress my professors or roommates put upon me. Even if any family drama happens to seep into a great trip home, feeling that I’m not out of the loop on the craziness that is my family makes me happy.
2. To the friends that I don’t see.
I may not talk to many of you anymore but know that I miss you. I miss the times we had getting ready for prom or cramming for our AP Exams. I miss complaining about practice for the team sports we played. I see you on social media and it seems like you’re happy and I am happy for you. I hope the next time we are home I see you and hear more from you because college is nothing like high school and we are so much different.
3. To the friends that I still have.
Thank you for having my back every time college or the real world gets scary. For knowing who I was five years ago and who I am now. You have seen me at my worst and my best, you’ve seen me lose people I thought would be in my life forever, but I can say I am so happy you’re actually the ones who will never leave.
4. To my awkward middle school time.
Middle school sucks. Thank you for being short and being a right of passage I can now look back at and laugh with my friends who had the same awkward braces and makeup mishaps.
5. To my memories.
Thank you for letting me keep the most important ones. The smiles that home brought to me, the innocence that I had and the love I got to share. The people I maybe will never speak to again but changed my life in ways that are unforgettable.
6. To that place that makes me smile.
The place I always need to visit, to touch or smell the air. My happy place that no one could ever take from me. The place I will always find solace in because of the times that were spent here.
7. Thank you for making me into who I am today.
I would be a completely different person without the life my hometown gave me. What seemed like the end of the world, (a best friend fight, not getting into my dream school, a high school romance ending, or a CIF loss) are now events that have made me who I am today. My hometown will forever hold some of the best memories and times that I have to date.
