Everyone has a place that they call home, but for me home is West Roxbury, Massachusetts. Ever since the start of high school I can remember having this constant need for a change of scenery. I couldn't wait to move into college and spend time away from my little hometown. Since then, I've travelled to many other enormous cities and beautiful countries yet oddly enough I found my heart was still in West Roxbury.
If you've ever travelled through West Roxbury you know that it encompasses the typical small town features: delicious family owned pizza shops, cute little houses that line the streets, and of course the regular hangout spots which include the local parks and basketball courts or the comfy neighborhood bars. But if you're from here, like me, you drive down Centre Street and pass by The Real Deal Pizza Shop, The Corrib Pub and Billings Field and you immediately feel at home.
I've recently uncovered a completely new world apart from my sweet little safe haven of West Roxbury and I've realized that this world has many of the features that my home does. Other cities and countries have delicious pizza, cute houses, and their own neighborhood hangout spots but what these other places do not have is the good people that West Roxbury does.
No one quite compares to the people in West Roxbury. These are the friends that you made in elementary school, the adults you met that have become like second parents, the neighbors who snuck you that extra piece of Halloween candy, the middle school crush who broke your heart, the children you babysat, and the people you sit next to in Church. They're the people you excitedly share every first Sunday in June with at the Corrib Road Race, the family that rallies behind you in times of tragedy and the community that praises you throughout your greatest triumphs. They're the first ones to knock on your door with yummy dinners and warm chocolate chip cookies when you're mourning a loss and the ones to send prayers when you need them most. These are the people who have seen you at your worst and have still stuck by you. They're the people you meet at The West for dinner and drinks on your weekends home, the ones you still share a group text with, and the ones you'd be lost without. These are the people that make you who you are. These are the people who make West Roxbury home.
