Whenever I tell people at my college that I'm from the Bay Area, California, they seem confused.
Many respond by saying, "why would you move to the east coast from California" or "why did you move so far away from your family." It's difficult to respond to these questions; I mainly just feel reprimanded for my cross-country decision. However, my decision was not made on a whim.
In fact, I've seen myself moving out of state since I was a Sophomore in high school. These are the reason's why I moved across the country into the great frontier of my college education.
First of all, I wanted more independence. This is not to say the going to college in-state won't foster independence. For some people, going to college in-state is the best decision for them. However, I know myself; I know my weaknesses. If I have easy access to my family and hometown, I may never want to figure out anything on my own. It has always been my tendency to rely heavily on my parents to help me through certain situations.
Therefore, it made sense to make it difficult to access my parents directly. Though they are only a phone call away, I must rely on myself to thrive every day in college. By slowly introducing myself to independent living, I will be better prepared to tackle the "real world."
Next, I wanted something different. I've lived in California my entire life, and it was great. Even so, I feel that I have gotten most of what I could out of it. I have gone to class with and lived in the same town as my friends since pre-school. I had never experienced any weather below 40 degrees, never mind spent a winter in the snow. I hadn't much confronted political opinions apart from my own, making the conversation, as you can imagine, quite boring. I had never had to use public transportation. I hadn't experienced any of this.
Does it make me that crazy to want to change it up a bit? It is my goal to stay inspired and never get too comfortable in life. In California, I was too comfortable. Even if I move back to the west coast after hating everything about living on the east coast, it would have been worth it to me.
Though there are many other reasons why I chose my specific school, there is one more major reason why I chose the east coast in general. As strange as it is to say, I wanted to struggle. I want the adversity. I want to adapt to my new environment and struggle while doing it.
This last semester away from my family and everything that is familiar to me has been the hardest time in my life. However, I don't regret anything. It is important to me to make these difficult decisions in order to find my way on the path to adulthood. If I can struggle through a cross-country move at the age of 18, I believe I can tackle any challenge.
