I have spent my life living in the Golden State of California for eighteen years, filled with endless sunshine and an LA breeze. Living in Los Angeles for ten years prepared me to move up north, an hour and thirty minutes away, to a town called Bakersfield. But, I have never been a big fan of moving. If you’re like me, you get used to the city you call home. In fact, I thought I was going to hate moving to Bakersfield but, looking back it was the best decision my family made and I’m glad to call it home.
When it came time to apply to college, I knew that I wanted to go to Harvard, in Massachusetts. I already had an idea that I would be going to college out of state. But, I never considered going to New York until I got the application packet from Pace. And when acceptance letters were mailed out, Pace was one of two colleges to accept me and was the first college I received an acceptance letter from. As a little girl, I would always tell my mom that one day I was going to end up in New York. And, low and behold, here I am! I can now say I live in Manhattan.
It was a big change, moving to the Big Apple from The Golden State. It was definitely not what I expected; seeing NY in the movies is different than experiencing it in person. When I made the move to the Big Apple, my mom, my sister, her son, and husband joined me to make sure I was settled in properly. I knew eventually they had to head back to California and when they did, the feeling of missing them hit me hard. I cried for the first two weeks. However, I knew that although I was 3,000 miles away from my family, it was not a forever feeling. I knew that I would be heading back during breaks and thanks to the power of technology, I could Skype and Facetime them whenever I wanted to.
Homesickness is a common feeling for anyone who is far from home, whether it’s for a week or months at a time. After becoming so accustomed to a daily routine at home, you tend to miss that when you are away. The adjustment was hard and at times I looked back and questioned if I made the right decision and I can confidently say I did. I did not get accepted into any Universities in California and I believe that was for a reason. Maybe it was time for me to explore the world and that is exactly what I am doing! Everything happens for a reason and although change may be hard at first, in the end, change is for the better. I am happy to be in New York.