After going to college and leaving my small hometown, I realized how grateful I was for it. Everyone else did not understand how close I was with my friends and for how long. You realize that living in a small town we find ourselves lucky to have our friends so close by. I would not have wanted to grow up anywhere else.
You have had the same friends since you were in first grade.
That close group of friends knows everything about you.They share memories with you throughout the ugly, the bad, and the good years. Mostly many memories of the "awkward" elementary school years.
You know everyone that goes to your school.
When you walk through the hallways you may not say hi to everyone, but you know everyone you pass. If you do not know someone in your class you know they just moved here.
You know where everyone is on Friday night in the fall.
If you are not at the football game then you are not a true town rep. The football game is where you catch up on the whole week and what is going on for the weekend. Of course, we also cheer on and watch the football game. And the student section is always filled and matching.
You can walk to your friends house across town in no more than 15 minutes.
It's not a big deal when your parents can't drive you because everyone's houses are really not that far apart. We say "across town" as if it is five miles away.
You are close with the people in the grade above you and below you usually.
With your grade size being tiny you always seem to hang out with other people besides in your grade. Once in a while both your grades get together, and it may sound like it is a lot of people, but it is really not a lot at all.
When something happens in town everyone will know in a matter of an hour or so.
There is really no privacy when it comes to news, good or bad. If you fell down the bleachers everyone will know, if you get in a fight with your friend everyone will know. No matter what, the whole town knows everyone's business.
At the end of the day, if things are bad, the whole town is there for you.
When you lose someone, the whole town is there for you. They pick you up when you are down. When things go in a downward spiral the whole town gets together to pick up the person who is hurting.
There is no place like home, especially when your friends are your family.
