How We Got Here

I had visited around 50 cities in 12 different countries by the time I was 25. I had lived always within the hustle and bustle of a city that never stood still. The sound of swishing vehicles would lull me to sleep. I used to love the white noise of urban living. Silence was too loud for me.

And so, I am bewildered and in awe whenever I look up and down and around my neighborhood to find that we have made our home smack in the middle of suburbia. And not just your regular suburb. It's more like a hybrid between country and suburban living. This is where they have converted acres and acres of cornfields into family-friendly subdivisions. In fact, we were a part of a historical development. Population was 5,000 one year and grew to 20,000 in less than five years. We were one of the many young couples who suddenly found themselves prioritizing the upbringing and future of their preschool-aged children over any exciting delights urban life had to offer. Hence, the move.

We now drive everywhere as opposed to walking or taking the bus. We occasionally have bovine byproducts perfuming the air. I can no longer look towards the lake and proclaim that as East, so that I can find my North, South and West. I swear the streets in the Subdivisions were laid out to challenge a person's skill in mazes. We congratulate ourselves when we can find directions to a friend's house in Mapquest. We ourselves are proud that our own residence is in fact an official address.

Ah, but the quiet and the endless rolling fields can grow on you. I don't mind it as long as I've got my Borders and Barnes and Noble within a 10 mile radius. A decade of having settled down feels like a lifetime, but amazingly enough, this suburban country living can still hold surprises for a former city girl.