Leaving the comforts of the familiar is not easy, often comes with great sacrifice, isolation, discomfort, anonymity, and sense of disconnect. It takes a lot of courage and momentum to start over. I left my hometown when I was 18 and mostly never looked back. Sometimes there's no rationale why a place isn't right for you. Sometimes you spend so much time on the run, you wonder if it's you you're running from. But sometimes you run far enough to find yourself in new territory that finally feels like home. I have nothing but love for where I come from fr and romanticize all the best parts of it, visiting from time-to-time with nostalgic, poetic glee. But sooner or later that feeling creeps in and it's just so obvious that I cannot stay. I don't belong and it's not in an angsty teenage way, but in a real, factual, this is not where I serve out my purpose kind of way. The world is a big big place. Travel, explore, rent, sublet, gig, study, improvise. Find your coordinates, do whatever it takes. Cities have a soul and you deserve to find yours.
