I made the decision when I was in high school that I was going to move away and go to college in a big city. For me, my "big city" ended up being Richmond, VA. I don't typically come back home, and I almost never bring people back home with me. I'm afraid that they will be bored of my hometown and never come back to visit with me again.

Recently one of my friends went home with me a few days before Christmas to hang out. During this trip I found myself feeling somewhat embarrassed of where I came from. There is literally nothing to do in my hometown and needless to say, I think he was bored for a good majority of his visit.

Like anyone in my small town would do, I decided to drive an hour to the neighboring city just to have a change of scenery. If there is one thing that I dislike about myself, it's that I worry about everything and people's opinions of me. I continued to nag him about my small town and how I'm ashamed of where I'm from.

I know it sounds dumb to say, but I truly thought that my hometown would change people's opinions of me back in Richmond. Long story short, I realized that it's not really about where you come from but it's about where you go. Where you're from is what makes you, so you should never feel ashamed of where you spent the first 18+ years of your life... even if it is in a run down small town.

While my hometown may not be the most impressive place in the world, it's still where I grew up. I may leave Rocky Mount, but Rocky Mount will never leave me. It made me the young woman who I am today, and for that... I'm very grateful.