The First Move

The narrator recalls the time their parents informed them and their sister that they would be moving. At first, they thought they were in trouble, but their parents reassured them. The narrator didn't understand what moving meant and had many questions. Moving was difficult because they would be leaving their friends and grandparents behind. It took time for the new place to feel like home, and starting at a new school was challenging. However, they eventually made new friends and found the experience to have a positive impact on their life. They have since moved three more times and appreciate the opportunity to start over. When I first learned that we would be moving was when my parents sat me and my sister down in the dining room. At first I thought we had done something wrong and that we were both in trouble. It was not uncommon for me and my sister to be in trouble at this age. My mind was racing to think about what I did wrong. Had I not done the dishes, I questioned myself, or maybe I had forgot to throw the trash. But then my parents had told us not to worry and that we were not in trouble. That is when they told us we would be moving away. At first I didn't really know what that meant. It was a foreign concept for me. I did not understand what moving away meant. This was the only place I knew. Following that conversation with my parents, there were a lot of questions which I think is not uncommon for a second grader. However, they didn't tell us much, just that we would be moving. Which is understandable. I don't think we would have understood anyway. School was just starting and they told us we would be moving in the next month. It was difficult. I enjoyed going to school and seeing my friends. But it was different this time since I was going to be moving away. I guess it was hard to enjoy being with my friends knowing that I would be leaving so soon and never see them again. My friends were not the only people I would be saying goodbye to. We would also be moving away from my grandparents. And that was probably the hardest part. My sister and I would spend the summers there and every weekend we would go over for dinner. Saying goodbye to my grandparents was hard. Seeing them pretty much every week to only during the holidays was hard. But when it was time to move, that was the hardest. It was still surreal. It didn't feel like I was saying goodbye to my friends and family. But after packing all of our stuff and driving 5 hours to our new home, it felt real. Unpacking all of our things took a while. But even after we unpacked all of our things, it still didn't feel like we lived there. It felt like we were just visiting this new place and we were forced to call it home. And I thought we would still be going back. It felt like that for the first couple of weeks. It's hard to make a new place feel like home. And having to move halfway through the school year was difficult. It felt like everyone was already friends and I was behind. It was hard to fit in, but eventually I found my group of friends. The only thing missing was my grandparents and I could not find new grandparents. After this first time we moved, we ended up moving 3 more times after that. But it got easier each time. I've met a lot of new people and made a lot of new friends. Some of those friendships will last for a long time. I think some people see moving as a negative thing. To us, starting over is scary, but sometimes it is nice. I can look back on all the times I've moved and see it as something that has positively impacted my life. I wouldn't be the person today I am if it weren't for that.