I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. I was delivered at a local hospital and lived in homes my dad built for my family. I played outside, in my front yard with my siblings, spent the summers at the local pool and cheered on the Cleveland Browns and Indians every season. I attended a Catholic elementary school and a public high school. I learned and practiced my faith which I would do for the rest of my life. I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio.
I grew up in Morgantown, West Virginia. I packed up my dog and all of my belongings and moved them into an apartment with three girls I’d never met before. I went on countless job searches during the day and cried myself to sleep about money at night. I picked up college courses at West Virginia University where I recently graduated from. I learned the value of a dollar, hard work and independence. I grew up in Morgantown, West Virginia.
When I got to college I was met and met others with general questions to start a first conversation. The typical questions included those of, “What is your major?” “What brought you here?” “Where did you grow up?” While I answered the first two questions in the same way, the years I remained in college opened my eyes to my real answer to the third question. It also puzzled some of the people I met.
The meaning behind “What is your major?” is simple. Tell me your major and we’ll see if we can determine whether or not we’re compatible in education, if you can help me with English homework because I’m a math major or if we know some of the same people.
The meaning behind “What brought you here?” is also very simple. Was it that your parents went here, you received an in state scholarship, maybe you came to play a sport or did you just want to move away?
I answered, “Where did you grow up?” the same way for two years. I didn’t think there was a way other than “Cleveland” to answer the question. The reality is, it’s not a simple question that deserves a simple response. Typically, when you think of where you grew up you think of where you aged while you were a kid becoming a teen. While that may be the literal sense of the term, I began to realize the figurative term is so much different and means so much more.
Yes, I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. That’s where my family is from and where I originated but to me, growing up means growing on the inside, maturing and learning the real, hardcore values that life has to offer. I did this in Morgantown, West Virginia and I felt it getting off the highway in my loaded up, Ford Focus, no money in my pockets; I just didn’t know it yet.
Looking back at the memory of myself stepping out of my car, onto the pavement and into my apartment complex I remember feeling a different air throughout my body. I remember feeling like it was the weight of sadness on my chest but now, I realize I felt that way because I thought I was supposed to. What I really felt was relief. This place, this expensive place, was my new beginning to whatever I needed to restart. Whether it be my education or relationships, this place was going to change me. And that’s exactly what it did.
You see, as I reflect on graduation and my time spent in a place I couldn’t wait to get out of, I realize that while Cleveland has my heart, it doesn’t have my whole heart. Morgantown has taken over so much of my heart for the life lessons it taught me. Growing up in one place but really growing up in another has given me confidence in that I can explore the world and call the entire thing home.
