In My Hometown {USA}

I don’t know about any of you, but I have a love/hate relationship with my hometown.

Bozeman, Montana, is a college town in the southwestern part of the state. It really is a lovely town, ringed by mountains, with a historical downtown, parks and pine trees, rivers and ponds. The sky is almost always blue and the sun is almost always shining, even when there’s snow on the ground. I have a hard time explaining this town because it sounds almost too idyllic to be true.

Despite its real loveliness, I spent most of my childhood dreaming of other places to go. Really, I spent most of my childhood reading everything I could find, and collecting places and experiences I would someday have. I refused the idea that I might ever come back to this small (not so small anymore!) town and “settle down.”

Yet, because my father is an employee at the university in Bozeman, it was hard for me to not accept the scholarship that goes along with that. There is another school in Montana that I could have gone to in a town about three hours away, but my brother was already at school there, and I was determined to be different.

While I attended college here, I was able to travel and study abroad a little. Traveling helped me appreciate my hometown a little more, but I didn’t really get why people loved it here so much until I moved to Denver.

Almost everyone you meet in Colorado loves it there. Yet, I didn’t, not right away.  It wasn’t my little mountain town where you could go for a quick hike after work and I was very aware of that. Instead, you’d have to battle traffic and oh-so-many people just to find my coveted mountain peace. There were different things about Denver I learned to love, but it helped me learn to love my hometown, too.

I’ve been back in Bozeman for almost two weeks now. While I appreciate the peace and the beauty here so much more, there is still a little bit of a love/hate thing going on.

I love that the pharmacist immediately knew who my parents were and could pull up my information quickly, even though it had been over four years since I’d picked up a prescription there.

I hate that I had an extremely awkward encounter with an old high school crush.

I love going to my favorite coffee shop and knowing it will consistently be delicious.

I don’t like that I cannot stop running into people I’d be okay not seeing again for awhile.

I love running into family friends I haven’t seen in years and catching up quickly.

I don’t like that even in this idyllic place, things seem to grow and change and get more crowded.

Despite this love/hate attitude of mine, It’s been great being back here, and I know the second we leave on Saturday, I will miss it (especially my family! And my dogs! And the great Montana summer!).

I am looking forward to spending a few weeks in Washington before our August 2nd departure, however. That place (especially E’s hometown) is pretty idyllic, too.

(Can we take a moment to appreciate that we are moving to Prague on August 2nd?! Ahh!!).

Linking up with Nicole!