Coming Back To Lakewood

I’ve already called many different places “home” in my 26 years, each meaning something very distinct from the others. My diverse homes have included an apartment in upper Manhattan, a cabin in the redwood forests of California, and a dorm room in northern Michigan. I grew up in Cleveland Heights and later Middleburgh Heights and Berea, and have been fortunate enough to have visited some places outside of the United States. As can be seen, I have a sort of wandering eye when it comes to my location in the world. I’m consistently looking for where I can go next, trying to be present in the place I am, but with the regular distraction of discovering what else is out there.

As I get older, I think I’m gaining a stronger appreciation for the idea of being rooted in a community. It seems to have to do with internal issues almost as much as external--the more comfortable I become with myself and my thoughts, the easier it is for me to exist in any environment, making it less likely for me to seek out a new location for the purpose of “finding myself”. This is obviously not something that happens vividly enough to be immediately noticeable, instead, it comes slowly and with a lot of bumps and jostles along the way.

I’ve started to see how long-term residents of a city begin to become a part of it, like individual strands of yarn in an afghan, each contributing to its beauty, structure, and functionality. The more entwined I become in Lakewood, the more I see its greatness, and the more I care about its future. For probably the first time in my life, I have a strong desire to become a part of that structure.

I began to notice my shift in thought just a few weeks ago while on a trip to Chicago. It is often the case with me while traveling to other cities that I quickly fall in love with the new place and feel the overwhelming urge to move there. I realize that this type of reaction can come as the result of many unique situations, but historically for me, I think it springs from my desire to seek new and better and more interesting environments for myself, as well as feeding my need to run away. What was different about this trip was that I very soon started to seek out the types of things I enjoy about being in Lakewood. I found that even when I experienced something comparable to what I have here at home, it still wasn’t as good. I didn’t recognize the people, didn’t like the food as much, didn’t like the bigness of the city and the overwhelming amount of options available to me.

That is not to say that I dislike Chicago or think that Lakewood is perfect. What I came away with after the trip was an incredibly strong appreciation and love for Lakewood, and my life within it. I love being close to my family, recognizing people in all kinds of places and having small chats throughout the day, knowing that my food is coming from good and local sources, riding my bike almost everywhere I go. I even love my job...in fact, I missed my job while I was away. Believe me, I realize how lucky I am.

All of that being said, I haven’t lost the travel-bug either. I have a strong desire to see new places and experience new things, but I’m truly beginning to love the place I come home to at the end of those trips. It feels good to have a strong enough connection to a place to not only appreciate what it is, but to want to put in effort to improve it. I know I’m not the only person who feels this way about Lakewood. It’s a special place and we’re lucky to have it, as well as each other. I’m looking forward to hopefully many years of calling Lakewood “home”, and helping it grow and change in the most positive ways possible.