Caroline King

We often take for granted the things in life that we are exposed to everyday. Our hometown, friends, and even family are all things that we don’t cherish enough. This goes hand in hand with the phrase “you never know what you got until it’s gone”, that we hear so often. Personally, I have realized that I am guilty of taking for granted the incredible atmosphere I was raised in. With a loving family, good education, reliable friends, and a close-knit community, what more could I have asked for?

My name is Caroline King and I am eighteen years old. I grew up in Augusta, Georgia, which I can easily say is my favorite place on earth. Before I left for college, I often complained about the small, boring town that I lived in. However, upon my leaving for school, I have realized how much this town truly means to me. Your hometown defines you; every street, every restaurant, just about every miniscule detail can be related back to my eighteen years living there. I have found that when I go back home, I can pass just about anything on the road and remember a particular event or memory that happened there. Of course, this is much easier to do when you live in a small town like Augusta. When people think of the town of Augusta, the Master’s Golf Tournament may be the only thing that comes to their mind. For me however, it is so much more. I think of the Friday night hangout spot at Sonic, the canal where my mom and I would go bike riding, the beautiful home that I was raised in, the backroads that my dad would take me on the four-wheeler, and Big Momma’s Southern Cookin’, which was my family’s favorite lunch spot on Sundays. Being away at school has really shown me how blessed I was to grow up in this town. So much so that if it was to work out, I would choose to raise my family in the same place. I have an older sister and an older brother, who both came back to Augusta after graduating from the University of Georgia. Just like always, I want to follow in their footsteps. Because I love spending time with my family, it’s difficult being away at college, knowing that they are all back there together, without me. I was taught the importance of family at a very early age, and I plan on stressing that to my own kids in the future. Being away from my family, friends, and hometown, has made me appreciate them even more. I now look forward to coming home to the “boring little town” that I spent the last eighteen years.