Leaving home

Although it has been more than 8 years since the day has passed, I can still remember it vividly; I had spent the previous night hanging out with my best friend, we walked out to the shore and reminisced as we passed landmarks that triggered memories from the past. Even while outwardly I did my best to remain positive, inwardly I knew that in a few hours my life would take a path that would diverge from all of the things around me that I known since childhood; from friends and family, from salt air, from home. During my last few months at home I had been well aware of this fact and I had come to gain a new appreciation of the community which I had grown up in. To an outsider, I am sure my home wouldn't stand out much from other small coastal communities in the area although to to me it would always hold a place in my heart.

As dawn drew closer, the stars perched above our heads slowly faded from sight

into the light of day. My friend and I sat in silence on the back step as the sun rose through the trees on the eastern horizon. Anything that was worth saying had already been said and no words could stop the inevitable from happening. We loaded my two bags worth of personal possessions into the trunk of the car, and finally the moment that I had been dreading for months was upon us.The mood of the moment hung heavily in the air as I hugged my friend. With all the composure I could muster, I said goodbye and turned towards the car. Driving to the airport I watched from the passenger seat as all that was familiar faded from view out the rear window. I had traveled this road thousands of times before, but this time was different. I rested my head on the door frame as my all nighter began to catch up with me and the roadside blurred in my tired eyes.

Now eight years later I have found myself thinking about home more as hiring at the airlines has begun again, and the prospect of finding work on the east coast has become a greater possibility. While being out west has presented me with opportunities that I would have never been granted had I chose to pursue my career closer to home, the east coast is still and will always be my home. For the past eight and a bit years I have been following my mind, allowing practicality and reason to guide my decisions. It was for my career that I chose to move to Alberta to learn how to fly, and in part it is the same reason I have remained here for as long as I have. Though reason and practicality have served me well, I think the time may have come to start listening to my heart as well as my head.

"I complain about it, I grumble about it, I can be mean about it sometimes, but I love it beyond reason, it's where I am from, it's who I am"- Craig Ferguson