I was raised in a small one-stoplight town in the south. I went to a small private school where my graduating senior class consisted of about 30 students, most of whom had been together since elementary school. When I was growing up, I hated my town. I couldn't wait to turn 18 years old, go off to college and move away. I wanted to meet new people, see the world and be successful. I felt like I was stuck in the middle of nowhere with absolutely nothing to do. I had these ambitious dreams that I thought I could only achieve in the midst of city lights. Back then, I defined success monetarily and looked down upon those who had never left the bubble of our little town. I just could not comprehend how an individual would voluntarily chose to stay and settle down in a town like ours, but when I left my views changed dramatically.
Next month, I will be graduating from a college that is five times the size of my town. I have met new people, seen a little bit more of the world and will be the first female in my family to hold a bachelor's degree, yet I don't feel successful or fulfilled. I am proud of myself, don't get me wrong; I worked my butt off to get where I am, but I just thought I would feel differently when I got here.
In a moment that was not unlike the Grinch realizing the true meaning of Christmas, I had an epiphany. I realized that I had been defining success all wrong. Success is not about how many people you know, how many places you have been to or how much money you have. Success is simply being happy, being healthy and being surrounded by your friends and family, whether you are in New York City or good old Virginia.
Learning this lesson has made me live my life differently. I am not so quick to judge others, as I once was and I don't take the little things for granted. I don't get annoyed when I get stuck behind a tractor hauling hay in a no-passing zone, I always wave when I meet someone on a two-lane back road and I smile every time I am driving home and the blacktop turns to dirt because these are the things I came to miss the most while I was away.
I'm proud of myself for graduating college and I'm proud of my degree, but I'm also proud to be from my small one-stoplight town, to have graduated high school with the same people I grew up with and to know that I can always come back home. My hometown shaped me into the person I am today and for that I will always be thankful.
In the words of Carrie Underwood, "Thank God for hometowns and all the love that makes you go round. Thank God for the county lines that welcome you back in when you were dying to get out."
