If you’re considering leaving your hometown, this is a love story you need to read

*left: ankle tattoo of cleveland skyline, right: ankle tattoo of palm trees*

The visions of my future never took place where I had always been.

It’s like I always knew I would leave without ever thinking much about it, until one day it became all I could think about.

And that day happened the moment I stepped outside of San Diego International Airport for my 22nd birthday. We stopped on the side of the road just to soak up the view of the bay and deeply inhale where we’d landed. It was my first time in California, my first time falling in love at first sight, and my first time falling in love with a place.

On the flight back to Cleveland, I knew I would be returning. And to stay.

It’s hard to explain without sounding corny or dramatic, but I really was just given a clear answer regarding my life’s path that I didn’t even seek out. I finished my last year at Kent State (taking 18 credits in the fall semester and 20 in spring - crazy!), walked the stage at graduation on a snowy Saturday in May, and was back in sunny San Diego by Tuesday.

Sometimes, I still live in vivid dreams of that summer of 2016. Feeling the wind in my hair driving west on the 8, blasting Drake’s “Feel No Ways”. Sand between my toes, up my legs, all over my car, in the house. I fell deeper in love with everything the city was every day. And everything the city made me.

*2016, sunset cliffs (ocean beach, san diego, ca)*

Moving there in my early twenties and being there majority of the decade, it was a pivotal time for growth and lessons.

And as I navigated the city, I also navigated the woman I was becoming.

I learned to appreciate the beauty in every situation.

I might be stuck in traffic, but I can’t ignore the sun sparkling on the water, the shadows on the mountains, or how close the clouds appear. I might have been crying 20 minutes ago, but now I’m sitting on the edge of the world at sunset cliffs.

I learned to

embrace the

different + new.

Finding myself in the mix of southern California’s melting pot of cultures and relaxed lifestyle encouraged me to exit my bubble. I journaled and watched the surfers, hiked mountains for fun, and went to Tijuana for dinner. In discovering a love for being curious, I discovered the ability to expand.

I learned how to be on my own.

In such a transient city (high military population, tourists), forming a stable community was not easy. I had to learn how to branch out and meet new people regularly, but also how to stand on my own and love my own company.

And so much more that I can’t even put into words here, at least without sharing the stories that accompany them. But even through everything I loved about the city, everything I learned and gained, through the new perspectives and strengthened independence, I also received something unexpected:

An appreciation for my hometown.

I mentioned how the visions of my future never took place where I had always been.

How I always knew I would leave without ever thinking much about it, until one day it became all I could think about.

So then I left, and I wouldn’t even visit for over a year after I did. And I won’t lie and say that first visit opened my eyes to how much I truly loved Cleveland, because it didn’t.

Honestly, leaving San Diego to go anywhere in those first few years was the last thing I wanted to do. But then the honeymoon phase ended. And the love was still there but the shine of this new special thing wasn’t as blinding. I could visit Cleveland with 20/20 vision (I also had Lasik eye surgery by now lol). And I saw it for what it is.

Not just the obvious ties, like family and friends. But the city itself. The view of downtown at night, the vastness of Lake Erie, nostalgia in familiar places, the abundance of trees, the loyalty of die-hard Browns fans.

Things that wouldn’t make me bat an eye about the city before, now made me smile. Made me emotional. Made me proud. I realized I had to leave to appreciate it fully. To not only tell everyone I’m from Cleveland because I’m from Cleveland, but because it’s a major part of who I am.

*2024 (euclid beach park, cleveland, oh)*

I had to leave, and really be gone, in order to look forward to coming back. In order to feel more connected to it.

Falling in love with where I went helped me fall in love with where I come from.

I learned that leaving was truly about expanding my roots. I could never forget or leave them behind or replace them, but rather water them with what I’d come to learn and retain from broadening my horizons. And speaking of roots… you might feel like a tree, held in place by your environment but you are actually a person. So you can feel grounded in where you come from without feeling like you have to stay there.

And when you feel called to leave, all you can think about is leaving. Then once you do, know that distance has the ability to reframe how stifled you once felt.

And thankfully, unlike people, your hometown will always be there and extend a warm welcome when you choose to go back.

-A

just a girl that loves to fall in love (with cities)