"Our homes should inspire us to go out into the world to do great things and then welcome us back for refreshment."

When I think about my hometown, I can’t help but feel content. It is the place where I am so strongly rooted, that I wouldn’t be me without it. It is where I took my first steps, learned how to ride a bike, made my first friend, and became inseparable from my brother. It is where I was taught who Jesus is, met my best friends, and attended school for 18 years. It is where I went on my first date, watched Friday night football games, discovered my passions, and most importantly, where I learned who I wanted to be. It is where I made my first mistake, had my heart broken, learned hard lessons, and experienced true loss for the first time. It really is where the best and worst moments of my life have happened thus far.

Going so far away for college has made me appreciate that special place even more. Whenever I get the chance to go home, I feel so nostalgic. I love driving down back roads near my house, eating at familiar restaurants, running the same routes I’ve always run—the list goes on and on. There is something about going back to where I come from that makes me feel centered. The second I get off the highway, it feels like a huge weight is lifted off of my shoulders. Once I’m home, I always breathe a little easier and sleep a whole lot better.

This world is a vast place filled with so many unknowns. No matter what unexpected things happen, I always know one thing will remain constant. My hometown will always be my home. I know that the service at the Steak ‘N Shake by my house will always be obnoxiously slow, that there is a pothole on Hazel Dell that hasn’t been fixed for years, LA Fitness is most crowded at 3 p.m., high school students will forever complain about The Trail, and cops sit in the Clay parking lot to catch speeders. I know that no matter how long it has been, I can always walk into my house and it will smell the same. These are things that make me feel comforted and at peace. No matter how fast paced the rest of the world is, my hometown will always be stable and consistent.

We all come from different places, have different upbringings, and have different experiences. What is really cool is that as our paths cross, we get to take a peek into where each of us comes from. We all get to “leave the nest” and explore this crazy world of ours, yet we know we can always go back to our roots. I get to take all of the lessons I learned and experiences I had in my hometown and use them to make a difference in the world. If I ever feel lost or confused, I know for sure that I will always be able to find myself again in a little suburb in Indiana. My hometown is where my glory is. There is nowhere else quite like that special corner of the world.