The Origins

I was born at Riverside Community Hospital, and 18 years later, I'm still here. Well, I live at my college campus, but my parents' house is in Riverside. Out of all the schools I attended, only one was not in the city. As a kid, or product of the housing boom and eventual decline, I moved around a lot, but none out of the Inland Empire. From where I can remember I've lived on the "north" side and "new south" side of Moreno Valley, "orangecrest" in Riverside, and the "hawarden" area of Riverside. In orangcrest I've lived in three different houses. 

Changing schools comes with moving. From pre-school to 3rd grade I attended a private school. At the start of the traditional schedule of 4th grade, I attended Alcott (Riverside), and than at the start of the round-track schedule I attended Sugarhill (Moreno Valley) and started the 5th grade with them. At the start of the traditional year for 5th grade I went to Victoria (Riverside) and finished 6th grade there. My first year completing a grade since 3rd. Than I went to Earhart (Riverside) for middle school and North (Riverside) for high school. The best part about all this is that Victoria was in a different part of Riverside than Earhart, and that was in a different part of the city than North. 

Looking back now, moving around a lot and never really having a place to settle down is probably why I don't feel like where I live is home. Sure I call it that because it's the common word for society, but it doesn't feel like "home" for me. I've had it in my mind since I was little and we first moved that no place we were staying was home. It wasn't going to be permanent. 

As I get older and I'm living on my own it begins to dawn on me that home isn't necessarily a location, it's a mind set. Home is wherever you feel most comfortable with whomever you feel most comfortable. Home is the place in your mind where you are at peace and can go when you need somewhere to run to. Home is whatever you make it.