Growing up in a town that is soaked in family history is special. Like, really special.
You may not recognize it as a kid. In fact, you may curse your family name every time you're just trying to buy some milk at the grocery store and a little old lady comes up to you and raves about your grandparents or your dad.
You will come to hate driving around town and knowing every stupid fact about the street you're on. (Dad, I know every fire hydrant you installed over your 20+ years working for the Town.)
When your grandparents are both in Heaven by the time you turn 10, you will begin to hate the town. Everyone knew them, and everyone loved them. That means countless stories that you don't care about. (You should change that. Cherish those stories. They'll be the only inside look at your grandparents.)
You'll go to the same high school your brother did, play sports at the same fields and hockey rink that your father did, and you'll buy your first scratch ticket at the same convenience store your grandfather used to frequent. These are all inevitable when you are a 5th generation townie.
You'll hate everything about your town. And then one day, you'll come home and be blindsided. Your family is moving 3,000 miles away. East Coast to West Coast.
After 19 years of calling the same town "home", you'll be thrust into a new society. One where no one knows you, no one knew your grandparents, and the cops don't let you slide by with a warning because of your last name (Mom, if you're reading this, I PROMISE this isn't from experience).
You'll adjust. That's just how you operate. You'll find people to hang out with, things to do and you'll create new memories.
But each time you board your plane, and escape the shadows you grew up in, you'll feel an intense burning deep inside. You'll long for the days in your old town that you took for granted. You'll fly far, far away and think of your friends back home.
You will grow from this. You will learn to accept it. You will have a new appreciation for the place you grew up.
Because no matter how far away you are and no matter where you go, home will always be that stupid town you always swore you hated.
