You're shocked that I've made two posts this month, aren't you?
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My first choice college seems like a wonderful place. Rigorous academics, interested profs, small-yet-diverse student body...all surrounded by a quaint town with beautiful weather.... It also happens to be completely across the country.
This doesn't particularly bother me, but my mother is horrified by the very idea of it. Despite the fact that I could call and write to her whenever and see her twice a year, she seems to think I'll be homesick. In fact, she is now actively pressuring me to pick a college near home, but there is only one college in a 1000-mile radius that I'd even consider attending. And it is nowhere near as awesome as my first choice.
I just don't understand her point. I mean, I'm not going to be around here the whole rest of my life. What's the difference if I get out before college or after? I get that it's a mom thing, wanting to keep her baby as close to her as possible for as long as possible, but really it's just annoying.
I'm not particularly close to my family (or anyone else round here), so I truly don't think I will even be homesick. I guess I might miss some aspects of home, but nothing strong enough to turn me away from that beautiful establishment of post-secondary education. It's a little frustrating that my own mother can't even see how detached I am from everything here.
I think when I told her how I wanted to travel, she didn't really get it. She thinks I'm going to settle down in the city, get married, have 2 kids, and make occasional trips to Mexico. No thanks. When I say I want to travel, I mean I really want to explore the world. Backpacking through Europe will be the first adventure, and who knows what after that. Maybe I'll live in the city here, maybe some village in Switzerland. I just don't know yet. Maybe I'll find a life partner, but more likely I'll go it alone. And I just won't be having kids--no maybe's for that one.
The point of all that is I am going to be away from home. Whether I miss this place or not, I'm not going to stay here. So why keep putting it off? I need to see the world, and college will be the first step towards it.
