Travel from Coast to Coast then Repeat

    To my left was yet another road sign declaring the shrinking distance between our cramped car and another McDonald’s. To my right was  one of my dogs blocking the opposite side window. 

    My legs and feet were warmed by my cats but unfortunately my legs felt as if they would be forever numb. My neck felt stiff and threatened to forever remain in a forward facing position, which was OK for the moment as all I would see if I looked behind me was a trunk full of suitcases, food and pet supplies. So instead all I could do was continue to look forward and onward.

    To some it would seem I was on a wholesome family road trip. This, however, was not the case. My family and I were moving across the country from upstate New York to Corvallis, Oregon.

    Yet again.

    Three cross-country moves in six years.

    I was a young and bright-eyed fourth grader the first time my parents told me that we would be moving almost 3,000 miles away from my idolized older sister and the only two people I had ever called my friends. 

    I adapted, had a new room, tried to make the most of an awkward year as the nerdy new girl, then it happened all over again and we once again began packing boxes. A little over a year after arriving in Oregon, we were back in New York. 

    Not only back in New York but back in the same town we left. While we were gone it was as if time had stood still in Livonia. 

    Why did your family move to Oregon? What brought you all the way from New York? Do you have family in Oregon? Did your parents move for work? 

    For the amount of times that people have asked me these questions, you would think I’d have an answer. I expect to have an answer, a concrete and sane answer but it changes every time.

    My dad has a son and grandson that lives in Oregon City. My mom thought she would like the West Coast better. So we moved to Oregon for the first time.

    We got homesick after that and came back to New York. However, after Covid nothing in New York felt the same anymore, not my friends or my school. So we figured that some change would be good and even though we left, my parents and I still liked Oregon. 

    Each of these reasons is a valid possibility for why we moved so many times. The real reason or reasons could have been all of these, one of these, or none of these. If I were to ask my parents right now what their reasoning was, their answer would be different from the last.

    I moved because I had to move. My parents moved so I did too. That being said I always hoped to find a new part of myself in each new state, town, or house. Make new friends, have new experiences.

    When I was younger I wanted to believe that I had been uprooted from everything and everyone I knew for a reason. I believed that reason would eventually become clear but it never did. 

    Now it’s no longer the reason behind the moves that I find important. What’s important is that I discovered how to accept and adapt to change.

    I learned to grow around my surroundings. To take in all the culture and experiences that every new home had to offer. I learned how to say goodbye to people, how to have long-distance relationships, and how to know which people to let into my life.

    Instead of focusing on what I left behind, I looked to the future. What new opportunities could arise?What could I gain from a change in culture and perspective? 

    I kept in contact with my sister and best friend in New York. I made two best friends while finishing high school. I took advantage of the student aid that Oregon offers and enrolled in Linn-Benton Community College, where my education and friendships continue to grow. 

    I now have the self-confidence I need to explore and travel, to discover what I’m good at. In the past I may have been too afraid to venture too far or to try something too new.

    Now I welcome new experiences because I never know when I might discover a person, place, or passion that could bring something great into my life.

    Something great that I never could have imagined or seen coming.