"I'm from a teeny-tiny town you've never heard of called Weyers Cave, which is in Augusta County, right smack dab in between Harrisonburg and Staunton, up in the Valley."
I even have synchronized hand gestures to describe the location even further, according to the guys who live across the hall from me, because every time a new person wanders into the hallway between our suites, the inevitable occurs: "So, where are you from?"
It always makes me smile to see the guys jump at the chance to tell our guest before I can. I think they do this partly to pick on me, and partly because I come from a novelty town. Most of the people that live in my dorm are from Richmond, major cities near the coast, or, the highest percentage by far, NoVa (Northern Virginia). I, however, live in a town that is practically invisible on a map, unless, of course, you were specifically looking for it.
Many of my peers that I graduated with hated small town life. The kids I went to school with could not wait to get away, and as the countdown to graduation began my senior year, everyone wanted to broadcast their desperate need to leave Augusta County and move on to bigger and better things.
I was part of the minority, however. I never had this burning desire to leave and never come back. There are sometimes quirks about a small town community, like how EVERYONE knows either your dad or grandparents or even how the old ladies of the church know EVERYTHING about your life, whether you want them to or not. But many of my family friends have been close to the Slaven and Craun side of the family for the six generations that we've been here. We look out after each other like family.
After moving in to Virginia Tech, which seems like a long time ago, but in actuality, is not, I said I would walk my parents back out to the car when it was time for them to go. As we were walking, my dad, whom I am especially close with, gave me a really good piece of advice:
"There's a lot of people that go to this school, Morgan, from a lot of different places and backgrounds. You're a good kid, so don't try to be like the majority of people, make them want to be a little more like you. Just remember where you came from."
Just last night I had an in-depth discussion with my suitemate, who is originally from Nepal and now lives in Fairfax, about people's back grounds and culture. She was telling me what it was like to live in Northern Virginia and how people just regularly ignored the world outside of their own little bubble of friends and family. No one had any personal contact with the rest of people they lived and worked around every day, and she hates that.
I was proud to be able to tell her about my home town, even with its small population and quirks. I told her about it's history, and the sites, and the character of its people. I was proud to say that's where I came from.
(View from my front porch of the Valley)
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