As a teenager I was always complaining about my hometown; how it was too small, how it was boring, and how I swore I would only come back when I had to once I went away to school. I took every opportunity in my youth to travel and explore places outside of the bubble of my little home, and I couldn’t wait to get out. I had a head full of places I wanted to be other than home and a heart that desired something new. All of that seemed to change soon after I arrived at college.

At first, I loved the fact that everything around me was brand new—new buildings, new people, new coffee shops, and all of the new experiences to come. I thought my mom would have to physically force me to come home for the holidays. Although halfway through my first semester at college, the excitement of being around so many unfamiliar things wore off. The work started to pile up and midterms were around the corner. Surprisingly, I found myself begging my mom to come pick me up.

My mother, being—well, a mother—dropped everything and picked me up from school. All of my anxiety and stress seemed to melt away by the time we arrived home. She didn’t understand why I had her drive the hour and a half to come get me.

There was something about being home that took away the feeling of being “small” and alone that I felt at college. Who would have thought that I would crave the familiarity of my home?

Although I hoped I would never leave my hometown and become like the people who live there, I now realize that it has shaped me in so many ways. The familiarity of the faces, whether I know the people or not, gives me this feeling of belonging. I can walk the streets of my hometown and pass many people I do not know and still feel like I am not alone in this world.

There is something about the intimacy of your home that can ease your mind. When everything seems to be too much, I know where I could go to escape it all and I am beyond grateful I have a home that is so dear to me now. The places I saw everyday and took for granted when I was in high school are the places where I yearned to be the most. I never thought that I would be the type to love coming home, but here I am sitting on the beach of my small town, writing about how thankful I am to have a place to come home to that eases my mind, heart, and soul.