This weekend was a friend’s 40th birthday party. Her close knit crowd flew her “home” to Southwick, MA and held a surprise party. I was happy to be invited and even happier to attend. Even better yet, my sister came “home” with my nephew for the party, too!
I have shared before that I grew up in Southwick, MA. In retrospect it was a great childhood with wonderful friends and a safe, old fashioned, country surrounding. Even so, I distinctly remember saying several times in my teen years, “Get me out of here. Anywhere but here.”
I now know that that is a totally normal thing for teenagers and that most of us felt the same, regardless of where we grew up. I never went very far, but now I am so glad that I didn’t. Gathering with friends from Southwick makes me so happy. We have connections and understandings of each other because of our experience in a small town that we would never have shared in another place.
Being there with my friend on her special occasion and all of our friends and especially my sister made me so glad that I am still here in Western MA. We may not all still live in Southwick, MA, but we share a history that creates a legacy that cannot be replicated.
Life in a small town like Southwick, MA may not be as glamorous or cosmopolitan as we thought we wanted, but it does foster a lifetime of support and a legacy of love.
Related articles
- You Know You’re From Southwick If… (westernmahomes.net)
- The Highest and Lowest Home Sales in Southwick, MA for 2011 (westernmahomes.net)
