Moving Away From Everything

Eric
Eric
Jul 23, 2017 · 3 min read
From a walk around the block

The first time I moved away from everything I loved was back in 2010.

Why did I even choose that college? Maybe to get away? To experience something new? Maybe it was just a last resort, it’s hard to remember.

But I do remember those first couple of days in the new city, not a friend for miles. I like being by myself. But this was different. This was being alone. And reality hit when I was sitting on the carpet playing Street Fighter late one night. I should probably talk to people. I shouldn’t fall back into my shell. I shouldn’t continue to be the high school version of me.

Long story short: I made better friends, fell in love once maybe twice, declared this new city my home, found my passion in life, said I was never going back to the town I grew up in cause now I’m a new person. After moving away from everything, I learned to think, learned to write and make music and read. I learned how to talk and act myself. I even learned how to look in the mirror and appreciate who I really was. That was the best decision I ever made in my life. My proudest moments are when I moved away from everything. My happiest moments, my drunkest moments, my most embarrassing moments. And all of the things I left behind I think of fondly. I love those things I left behind.

The second time I moved away from everything I loved was in 2016.

And I remember those first couple of day in my new country. My stomach hurt. Homesick. Lovesick. Not a friend for miles. I couldn’t even speak the language.

Don’t fall back in your shell.

You’ve done this all before.

Of course, you are never really alone.

Long story short: I took the time to think about who I really loved and why I loved them, to think about what I wanted to do and why I wanted to do it. The second time I moved away from everything I loved I learned that there are lovely people in every corner of the planet, and between every mountain range is a village, and in every village there are people, and in every person there is a heart capable of incredible kindness. It taught me the true meaning of distance, of culture, of society, of nature, of language, of being a good, of growing up. I can say for a fact: I’m a better person.

I’ve enjoyed moving away from everything I love.

It only makes me love it more.

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Eric

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Eric

offbeat fiction

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