Whether you move from one town to the one next to it, or from one state to another across the country, moving is both an exciting and scary process. When I moved from Southern California to the northwest suburbs of Chicago, my entire life changed.
1. The questions people ask are never-ending.
When I moved from California to Illinois, I was 7 years old. My family moved in November, so I was a fresh face in a classroom full of kids who already were familiar with each other; I stuck out like a sore thumb. My classmates asked questions like, "why do you talk different?" "why would you move from the beach to snow?" and "have you ever even seen snow before?" Now that I've lived here for 11 years, some questions remain the same, but there are new ones every time I bring up my childhood. People ask me, "Why didn't you go back there for college?" "Why do you even talk about it? I doubt you remember anything." "Did you live near (insert literally any 'famous' town/city here)?"
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2. My childhood is very different from those of my friends who grew up here.
When I was a kid, I rarely spent time inside. I walked to school, walked home and sometimes even walked to church. During recess, my friends and I played wall-ball or dug in the dirt in attempt to find fossils. After school, all the kids that lived on my street would ride bikes or scooters, sometimes even skateboard around our cul-de-sac, create masterpieces with chalk in the street and play games like tag. Even after dinner, I would play in my backyard with my sisters until it was time for bed. This was a year-round routine. When I moved to Illinois, I realized that not many people lived that way. Sure, I still played outside with the kids on my street, but only sometimes. I got disappointed when my friends asked if we could play video games or watch TV. To this day, people will talk about TV shows that "were their childhood" like that's all they did when they were young. There is not a number for how many times I've been asked, "Did you even have a childhood?" The look on people's faces when I say that I spent my childhood outside never gets old.
3. A piece of me is hundreds of miles away, and I kind of like it that way.
Wherever you are born and raised always has a special place in your heart. Southern California holds several of my "firsts" like riding a bike, getting my first dog, making my first friends, having my first crush, having my first kiss (does it count if I was 6 and it was in a church with another 6-year-old?), getting my first serious injury... It's also where I made thousands of memories (yes, I do remember plenty from my early childhood), like camping with my family, playing on the beach, climbing on rocks, having TV dinners with my mom and sisters when my dad attended night school, sneaking food from the dining room table that my mom set out "just for the adults," attending the bible study she ran with my dad and so much more. All these things are very much my own; nobody I know today shares these memories with me. My friends never played where I played, visited the place my family visited or experienced the things I experienced. A piece of my heart and soul still lives in California, where nobody here can see or touch. When I think of this piece of me, I am brought back to a place that is only seen by me. It's like my own secret paradise.
4. I wouldn't change a thing about my life if I could.
I am often asked if I wish I hadn't moved, or what I think my life would be like if I had stayed in California. This is the hardest question in the world to answer. While I do wonder what being a teenager in Southern California would've been like, who I would've been friends with and what my hobbies would've been, I think I'd always choose this life over that one. I don't think I'd be half the person I am if I had stayed there. Because of my experiences growing up and living in Illinois, I know I want to be a Social Worker, I grew to love the fine arts (especially singing) and I made the best friends in the entire world. Although California still runs in my veins and I miss it dearly, I love everything about the way I live in Illinois and I could not be happier.
