Aurora
In the Summer between 5th and 6th grade my family moved to Aurora, Ohio. There were a number of reasons why we moved, but I am grateful for the impact it would have on my life. Aurora was an excellent school system and I finished my last 6 years of public education there. A sweet touch to the end of my high school career was having my dad for 12th grade AP literature (I ended up getting a B in it!) For anyone who doesn’t know what it’s like to have your parent as a teacher let me tell you that the first few weeks are extremely weird, followed by a feeling of delight when you need help or need to turn a paper in late.
While my grades were generally good (fluctuating between As and Bs) I wasn’t immune to teenage laziness and disinterest in some subjects which resulted in lower grades. In retrospect, however, my high school years were great. I wasn’t anywhere near the most popular kid, but I wasn’t a huge dork either. I had a superb group of friends that bring back fond memories. I still maintain friendships with some of my friends to this day.
Also during my junior and senior year I had my first girlfriend, and was able to experience all the joys that come with it including falling in love. We dated on and off for 6 years, including college, but in the end it wasn’t meant to be. After college she became a teacher through the well respected Teach for America program and moved cross country. I, instead, opted to stay in Northeast Ohio to develop my web design business here in Cleveland. Though we’re estranged now, and had a less than perfect breakup, I still think of her at times and wish her well.
There’s plenty more I could discuss regarding Aurora, but this was the overall gist of it. My other stories are more specific to actual things that happened in Aurora.