There's nothing that comforts me more than a small town with dirt paved roads where the sun sets in five colors and dawn is brought with roosters clucking and cowbells ringing.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve spent my summers in Bosnia visiting my extended family. Gorazde, the town where my grandpa owns his farm is about two hours outside the capital Bosnia. The farm consists of apple and pear orchids, raspberry rows, sheep, and cows. All of my favorite things. I thrive off the simplicity of nature, pick up trucks, and making pies with my grandma fresh from the fruit picked that morning. There is a certain rawness I love about the way we cool off our watermelon by placing it in the ice-cold stream running through the backyard instead of placing it in the fridge. It’s these small aspects of rural living that can’t help but make this farm my happy place. Even though I don’t spend more than a couple of months a year on it somehow feels more like home than Georgia does.

Spending so much time in a place that is drastically different from where I’ve grown up has shown me the diversity of different cultures and ways of living. I’ve come to appreciate both sides of the spectrum from city living to countryside farming. I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything because it has shaped me to become exactly who I am and more so appreciate the little things in life. Society's current relentless chase of perfection in possessions, relationships, achievements, usually only negatively leads to stress, anxiety, depression, and hasty judgments so I’ve learned that while important to work hard and have ambitions it's almost equally if not more important to stop and enjoy what’s currently in front of you.