In my high school, there were two types of people. Those who wanted to get out of our small town as fast as they possibly could after graduation and those who preferred to stick around for a bit, maybe even their whole life.

I was definitely one of the first. It's not because I had a bad high school experience or had no friends, it wasn't even that I hated my particular small town; I just hated living in any small town.

I've known that I wanted to live in a big city since before I can even remember. The thought of walking down the street with no one knowing or caring who I am was, and still is, the most attractive form of anonymity that I could possibly imagine. Growing up in a town where everyone knew you had sneezed by the time you were done wiping your nose just wasn't for me.

And although I say I hated growing up as one out of a population of 2,700, I still made many memories and still owe my little hometown so much. So, here is a thank you letter to my small hometown:

Thank you for giving me some of my earliest friendships.

Being around the same people for 12+ years will likely result in a few friendships. Some of these friendships may end up to be life long: they could be in my wedding or me in theirs. Sadly, most of these early friendships didn't last after graduation, but the memories of them will always be there.

Thank you for giving me so many opportunities.

Small town kids tend to have more opportunities than those who go to larger schools. If I had gone to a larger school, I might not have had the chance to try all the sports that I tried (and failed) or been able to spend my time doing all the various activities that I did. I was able to find the things that I loved to do and didn't have to compete with hundreds of others to be able to do them.

Thank you for all of the memories.

There's not a street that I can go down in this town that doesn't have some sort of memory attached to it. I'm sure this is true for those who grew up in a larger town or city: their town probably holds many memories for them too, but not the whole town. I can tell you who lived in almost every house in town while I was in high school and a memory to go along with them.

Thank you for all of the lessons.

For teaching me the basics: reading, writing, basic math. For teaching me what I want for my future and for all of the little things I learned, as well. A lot of these lessons will stick with me for the rest of my life and I have my little hometown to thank for that.

And as much as I say I hated you, you helped me grow into the person I am today, so thank you.