Going Home

As I was cleaning my room today (which was even more of a disaster than usual due to Relays) I kept thinking about how much it is going to suck to have to pack this all up in two weeks. On top of that, it's crazy to think I have two weeks left of being a college freshmen! When did life start moving so fast?? Let me tell you, the sucky parts, they definitely did not move this fast. The awkward middle school years? I swear they took a couple decades to get through. Fights with parents? Felt like 6 years. But the most fun year of my life? Gone in the blink of an eye.

This year at school has done so much good for me, I am absolutely dreading going home. Living in a small town everyone knows everything about you, and when a tragedy occurs, there is no escaping it. Almost eight years have passed since my mom died, but in that small town, it is a part of my past impossible to escape. My sister and I will always be those "poor little Mason girls who lost their mom" when we are there. I really can't stand the sad look people get in their eyes sometimes when they talk to me. And after eight years I would really appreciate it if every time I got a physical the nurses wouldn't apologize for the death of my mom.

While what happened to our family is something I will have to live with my whole life, it isn't something I am constantly sad about. I've accepted it, and I've kept living. But back in that small town....it's hard to get past. Can you imagine having to live with something from eight years ago constantly? Can you even remember what you were doing eight years ago?

Here at Drake, I am so thankful that not everyone knows everything about my past. I am only judged by what I do here, and I can fully look ahead to the future instead of living in the past. I can finally call some place "home".