Home Sweet Home

After school yesterday, I drove 3 hours northeast. Before flying to Arizona tonight, I'm spending a little time at my parent's house in Eldon. When you grow up in a small town, there are the kids who can't wait to get out and the kids who never leave. I think I fall somewhere in the middle. While I might have numerous complaints about my hometown, it also stores a plethora of precious memories. A part of Eldon will always be my home. Home means different things to different people, but to me, home is...

•Between Jefferson City and the Lake of the Ozarks on HWY 54
•The Eldon/Tuscumbia exit
•Knowing the story behind each cross on the side of the road
•Home of Christian Cantwell, the 2008 Olympic Silver Medalist in Shot Put
•Being welcomed by the Eldon FFA sign and the 2011 and 2014 National Champions in Parliamentary Procedure banner
•Where I became "Proud to be a Mustang"
•Footlong Chili Cheese Dogs and a Marshmallow Pepsi from the Cree Mee
•The middle school and football field sitting between a cow pasture and a cemetery
•Traffic jams caused by tractors and, even better, horse and buggies
•Smiling when smelling the scent of turkey barns
•Everybody knowing everyone else's business
•The lovely odors of turkey and cow manure
• Long, curvy, somewhat hilly roads
•Familiar faces and waving at every car you pass, even if you aren't sure who they are
•No Internet and very little cell phone service
•Quirky
•Where I learned to be the person I am today
•Family