I can’t sit still. I literally feel anxious staying in one place for too long, and I can probably thank my parents for that. As a kid, my family moved all over the place. We were basically nomads—gypsy travelers (just kidding). By the time I was 15, I’d lived in 2 countries, 3 states, attended 3 elementary schools, 2 middle schools, 1 high school, and lived in 6 different houses. Oh yeah, I was a pro at being the new girl in class.
I grew up everywhere. My dad’s job took us on a tour of quite a few different places, each a new adventure. It seemed like after only 18 months in one place, my parent’s would say “okay pack your bags we’re going to (insert city name here).” We never really stayed in one place for too long. We were there just long enough to paint the walls in my room and make a new bff, before we got up and left again.
My parents—my dad once a pilot and my mom once a flight attendant—are both embedded with the need to travel, and they didn’t let the birth of their perfect child (me)—and then later on my sister—stop them from doing so. When I was two, my dad moved with his company from England to the U.S. My mom and I came with, and so began our American life. From there, his job took us to Ft. Lauderdale, South Carolina, Colorado, and then to Orlando. Just recently my parents and my sister moved to San Diego, adding on to the seemingly never-ending list of places we’ve lived.
Jumping from city-to-city kept life interesting. We were always adjusting to new places, and meeting new people. I had to do the awkward new kid thing a billion times, walking into a completely new class with 30 people that won’t stop staring at you (I came from Colorado not from Mars…)?
As annoying as it was to adapt to all these new environments all the time, moving around definitely had its perks. I’ve made friends all over the place, so there’s always someone to visit, or catch up with over the phone. Or when friendships didn’t work out, and your fifth grade arch nemesis is out to get you, moving 1,500 miles away will definitely save you from getting gum stuck in your hair. Or when you accidently spill a bucket of paint all over your neighbor’s carpet—true story—packing up the moving truck saves the fam from any conflict in the cul-de-sac.
Having gotten used to a constantly changing lifestyle, it’s so strange to me that some people have lived in the same place their entire lives. Some of my friends still live in the houses they grew up in, or even the same city they were born in. Sometimes we’ll be in the car and they’ll point out their old houses, or their elementary schools, and I just point out a restaurant like “I ate there once.” These people people have roots in their city. They were born there, or their family is from there. My family has roots all over, I think. When someone asks me where I’m from, it literally takes me a minute to come up with an answer. Like, I don’t know, I have so many options.
My family’s slightly nomadic habits have really made me who I am today. The constant change-of-pace taught me to try new things, and always say yes to whatever adventure presents itself. Moving on and embracing change is a good thing, despite what a lot of people say. Experiencing new places and people is an important part of living, and I’m actually really grateful to have grown up the way I did, in all the places I did. I’ve got a cool collection of license plates, and I’ve learned some weird slang along the way. Moving is cool, ya’ll.