Needing the Restart

As you’ve probably heard before and might experience yourself, military families generally get an “itch” to move once they hit that second or third summer. And, well, I never truly understood that. 

Maybe it’s because my family tended to move over the winter or spring, or maybe we just had spent an inconsistent amount of years in places, but I didn’t understand how someone could start feeling uncomfortable in the place they’ve been living-- how they longed for the restart into something new and fresh. 

But recently, I’ve found that itch. 

My itch has come after six consecutive years living at Fort Leavenworth. While I'm forever grateful to be able to complete my high school education in one location, it felt weird to notice my friends moving once or twice while I’ve stayed in the same place. 

And now, with many of my long-standing activities wrapped up with high school graduation, I’ve found myself looking at moving with a hint of jealousy. 

Not moving has led to established friendships and education. It’s allowed me to grow in local programs. It’s given me opportunities to find every unique thing about the area in which I live. But also, not moving allowed for growth upon growth upon growth. I was used to doing as much as I could in a short period of time, but with the ability to grow deeper roots, suddenly I felt a little in over my head. With no forced restart of moving, all I could do was keep growing further and further into everything. 

And while it all was amazing and gratifying, it was exhausting. My first experience ever with planting deep roots has led to a lot of lessons, specifically about how not to over-burden myself. 

Graduating high school was my first step into “restarting.” Now, I'm in my first few weeks of college. This is the big restart. My university is only two hours away from home, but it’s still a new environment, a new set of people, and new activities. Nothing I did just a couple of months ago will be the same. 

I used to be scared of change, but now I’m excited for it. I grew my roots in one place, discovered myself there, and now I’m ready to learn more about who I am from a different perspective. Change lends itself to diversity, and diversity lends itself to being well-rounded. 

For the first time ever, I’m feeling that itch. And my goodness, it is making itself known.