Small towns have their charm, and a lot of people love them. Small-town USA, as I like to refer to it. To many, this life is paradise. You have everything you need in that town, why would you ever want to leave? Plenty of people, my family included, have tried to convince me that my hometown is where I need to be, but I moved away from my small town when I was 18, and I never looked back. I knew from when I was a kid, a small town just wasn’t the place for me.
Growing up in south central Kentucky was an experience I will remember my whole life. My hometown was very small; everyone knew everyone, you spent your Saturdays cheering on the UK Wildcats, and made sure you were at church on Sunday morning. There was no crime, no murders, just the occasional drug bust and DUI, which was rare, because it was a dry county. Everyone, for the most part, was friendly and kind.
It was a community of farmers mainly, and it wasn’t uncommon to get stuck behind a tractor on the way to school. Most people were Republican and very conservative, and you better not get caught doing anything bad because you can best believe, everyone in the county would know about it.
I had always dreamed of living in the city. I wanted to teach English at NYU, or be a news reporter in LA, or even go to a place like Nashville where I could see big buildings and spread my big, budding dreams. I grew up pretty poor and I never really got the chance to get out much. I joined Girl Scouts when I was young and we took a bunch of trips to Louisville, the current city I live in now, and the biggest in the state. It was a world outside of the small country life I knew. There were huge interstates, and everyone drove fast. There was so much diversity, and there were schools and parks everywhere. It was huge! I knew this is a place similar to where I wanted to be. The opportunity came to me when I turned 18, and I grabbed it. I received a full scholarship to college in the biggest city in the state, and I knew I had to take it. Little did I know, living in the city for 4 years would change my life to the point to where I can never see myself living in that small, country town again. I love all the loud noises and all the excitement. I love that I can walk to places I want to go, and I can do so many thing I could never do growing up. There are always new things to explore and new restaurants to try. The people who are around me share my same views, and I can meet people of different cultures and ethnicities, and not have to worry about hearing racist remarks. While this may be a small city, it’s just the beginning for me. There are so many possibilities for the future out there, and leaving my small hometown opened up that door for me.
I have nothing bad to say about my hometown, but it just wasn’t for me and I don’t see myself ever living there again. People grow, people change, and life moves on. They say “you can’t go home again” after you move away, and sometimes, that’s true just because you don’t want to.
