Three years ago, I moved to Ann Arbor, MI. I had just finished my junior year of college, and wanted to spend the summer near friends. Late in April, I packed the contents of my dorm room into my car and headed northeast to my temporary home, without a single inkling of what I was getting myself into.
That first summer, I fell in love. Not with a boy, but with a town. A culture. A way of life.
From the homeless guy who parades around downtown in women's clothing (and not even tasteful women's clothing at that) to the Mr. T look-alike I once passed on a run, it's full of hippies and intellectuals and geeks and nerds (they're not the same) and engineers and philosophers and wealthy folk and poor folk, who all, for the most part, get along because they they're part of the fabric of the city.
I liked that. I liked the freedom to be whoever it was you wanted to be. And just three months after I moved away, I moved back. I had my own place this time, a tiny apartment on a hill. I found an amazing church, and a small group that I adored. I learned the art of walking everywhere, while leaving my car buried under snowdrifts in the parking lot. I laughed (a lot), I cried (dumb boys), and I grew up a little.
And then I left for a new adventure.
Tonight I traced a path I took a thousand times that first summer in the city, from Ingalls Mall where I'd been watching a movie on a big blow-up screen to Lawrence Street where I'd lived in a rickety house with five other girls. This time, I didn't walk into the house. I simply got in my car and drove away.
The truth is, Ann Arbor isn't my home anymore. Sure, there are people I love there, and it's been wonderful these past few days to be around them, enjoying their company. But the day I turned in the keys to my tiny apartment on a hill, I surrendered my claim on the city.
Before this, I didn't know how attached a person could be to a place. I never was all that fond of my hometown. Ann Arbor is different.
It's where I locked my keys into my bedroom and had to wait nearly 24 hours before management would come and open it up. Where I learned to despise the show 24, having to to drag Gina away from episodes on DVD in order to maintain our friendship. Where Siew and I became friends bonded by not just height but mutual appreciation, and where Amanda and I got to know each other beyond being Gina's respective friends. Where I first started to run and began to consider the possibilities of my strength. Where I played MarioKart until 5am with Siew, Brandon, and Frank. Where KP shot Frank from two feet away with an airsoft gun and Frank screamed words I never thought I'd hear him say. Where Siew and I discovered the joys of homemade monkey bread -- and the benefits of making it in a house full of boys.
Ann Arbor is where I entertained several crushes, started a relationship, and had my heart broken. It's where I discovered just how many people CAN fit into a 350 square foot apartment. It's where I broke trespassing laws (no further comment on that one), and where I found out that friends with (limited) benefits is more complicated than it sounds. Where I learned to appreciate the taste of alcohol (for better or worse), and the art of letterboxing. Where I joined/formed a secret dinner party club with Chris, Katie, and Dave, and developed some pretty fantastic friendships along the way. Where I met an Olympic runner, and discovered they're human too. And where I learned to love football...University of Michigan football, that is (GO BLUE!).
Tomorrow evening I'll board a plane bound for Houston. I don't know if or when I'll be back. But about 1500 miles from where I sit tonight, a little white puppy is waiting for me. I really miss her furry little face, and though I'll miss this place, the memories, and the people who made it so great, I think I'm ready to head home.
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