Being the new kid in town has been a regular routine in my life. It has made me very different from most people, and I seriously think I have the word, “nomad” imprinted in my genetics. It effected my young self, moving from state to state, school to school. This is the life of a Navy Brat. I look back at it now, and see it as a positive experience. I always had to throw myself out there to make new friends. Also getting used to each new environment as my family moved around like gypsies. I can get used to any place, anywhere, and move anytime. Side note: I have a weird talent of packing a whole room in an half an hour.

After retirement, the last place we moved to, I did not like at all. I know “Small Town, USA” is not in my line of interest. This area was the hardest to get used to, because my grandfather’s father did not reside here and so on. The small town mentality, did not really agree to “new comers.” I was treated differently because, once again I was the new kid in town, only it was oddly negative.

It was mostly because of the derogatory ignorance of most people that did not choose to open their mind to the world. That could very well be because of the environment that surrounded them. They never chose to run away, so to speak. The environment is very depressing because of these values that people follow. The appearances and standards that you must live up to. There is a lot I never really understood, maybe because I was already submerged in so many different kinds of people. I never really had a culture shock, I was always sort of in it. That is what happens when your parents are in the military. My friends, along with myself, “escaped” this boring place where nothing ever seemed to happen, and nobody was accepted, in any sense of the word. This town is a vacation spot for people, because it is beautiful, but not so much on the inside.

To make this more positive, a lot of negative experiences that has happened to me and others, in this small town, has made me a stronger person. Do not jump on your high horse either, because yes, there are some great people that reside here. Most however, from mine and others experiences have been not so nice. I guess being an outsider is never quite welcoming, and a whistleblower of the truth is never accepted.

Being the new kid in this specific town has been very hard, but nothing is forever. Suffering does end, and you will see that your grass is greener whenever you plant yourself.

Always a pleasure Darlings.