I just recently saw the movie, "Sisters," with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, and one of my favorite lines was: "A house is just a building. Home is a feeling."
It's kind of cheesy, but I'm a sucker for the cheesy bits of movies that are majority raunchy sex jokes. I love those parts too, don't get me wrong. All of this got me thinking about my idea of home, because my parents have moved countless times, and I go to school out of state.
I love my family more than anything in the world, but I couldn't wait to get out of my hometown and see someplace new. I craved a life different than the one I had, so I went out and found one. I remain best friends with my best friends from high school, but I also have all new friends. I've experienced people, places, and experiences that people from my hometown will never get the chance to. I got out, and it was the best choice I ever made.
The idea of being around the same people in the same place doing the same things with the occasional visit to a fraternity party seemed like the type of future I wanted to avoid. It was the fear of living that life that made me leave the state entirely. I had to force myself to start over and try to learn more about the kind of person I wanted to be. I didn't leave because I didn't like where I came from, but because I dreamed about what I could achieve at the new places I could go.
Since I left my hometown and went somewhere brand new, I've learned that I love to challenge myself. I love to force myself to change and try new things. I love to learn the new shortcuts and hang outs in a new city. I love to meet people and learn about them. I love to learn about myself.
I encourage you to try something new with your life. Whether it be a new food, a new relationship, a new friendship, or a new hometown, put yourself out there and work for it. I left my hometown for the sake of becoming the person I knew I could be. I'm in a much healthier state of mind now that I've made a home for myself and not let my idea of "home" be confined to one building in a place that I never chose in the first place.
You never know what good could come your way if you take chances and make changes. Make this year your year.
