It’s common to hear stories of people who travel all over the nation just to attend the college of their dreams. For me, however, I only traveled a few miles from home to attend TCU. Initially, I thought going to school so close to home would be terrible, but after a year, I’ve learned to appreciate it immensely even with its pros and cons. Going into my freshman year, I was prepared to be annoyed with how close I was to home. I felt like there was nothing new to see since I had grown up in the area. There was no change in scenery, people, or excitement especially since a large portion of my graduating high school class was also attending TCU. I felt like my parents would never give me space since I was so close to home and I told myself I wouldn’t see them again until family weekend. A few days into living in the dorms, however, I fled home to temporarily escape living with 2 other girls. From this experience, I learned that it was okay to go home occasionally. This gave me the opportunity to stay in touch with my family, see my dogs, and even have a nice home-cooked meal, things that out of state students could not get often. There was also a con to being so close to home, however. It allowed me to run away from my problems too easily and hindered my process of becoming more independent. I avoided school and social responsibilities by going home. This was also a learning process, though, and I figured out how to balance school, family, and social life.
Another perk of going to school close to home is that I already knew all the secrets of Fort Worth. I was able to show my friends from out of town all the fun things to do in our free time. I was familiar with the restaurants, shops, and activities and I got to experience them with new people. I also got to discover new things about Fort Worth that I did not know before. I got to show my friends my hometown and create new memories in places that already held old and special memories.
As I go through my second year at TCU, I realize that I am more than blessed to attend college in my hometown. I get to experience something I’ve grown up with in a whole new light and to start a new chapter within a place that holds so many important memories.