home

“Mom I have to do this,” Maddy said as her mother paced around her room. 1

“But you’re so young! What if you get homesick or, or something happens! You shouldn’t go so far from home on your first years of college!”2

“Mom I can do this. I have wanted to do this since I was 10 years old. Texas has always been my dream. I hate it here! I want to live my own life not someone else’s! Mom… I think that life is a road where every so often you come to a turn that you never know where it leads. You have to decide whether or not to take it .I’m not letting anyone else choose anymore. I HAVE to do this.3

“Al… alright.” That night Maddy walked out that door and never looked back, her black hair shadowing her from the past.4

. . . 5

13 years later6

“Errrrrrr, dangit! How did this happen!” Maddy growled as she slammed her fists on her desk. She had worked tirelessly for the past 12 years to become a big lawyer. She didn’t make mistakes. She holed herself in her office barely ever coming up for air. Maddy worked her butt off for something she hated, skipping meals so often she looked like a skeleton with her skin almost translucent.7

“Maddy! What are you still doing here?” Maddy glanced up to see her closest collogue and friend Danielle standing in front of her with a scowl etched on her face.8

“I’m working,” Maddy answered impatiently. She wanted to turn in the paperwork she was working on tomorrow even though it didn’t need to be done for another week. 9

“It’s 11:00 at night! You need to go home.” Danielle paused momentarily before moving on.” I’m concerned about you. You don’t eat, sleep, or ever go home. It’s unhealthy, all you do is work.10

“I wouldn’t be where I am if I didn’t work at it.”11

“Home. NOW,” Danielle ordered as she pointed towards the door. Maddy was too tired to put up a fight so with a sigh she grabbed her coat and walked out the door.12

That night as she lay in bed she realized how much she truly hated her life. She hated her work, she hated the city, at the moment she hated just about everything. Earlier Danielle had told her to go home. No matter where she lived she would never really be home. Her true home would always be that little P.A. town that she left so many years ago.13

“It’s been 13 years,” she said aloud. A heavy sigh escaped her lips. Thirteen years. That long. Thirteen years since she had seen her parents or anyone from her home town. But she could never go back there. No one would ever accept or forgive her for packing up and leaving. She had to do something though. There was no way she could live like this anymore. Something had to change. 14

That night she made a pact. She was leaving. She didn’t know where, but anywhere was better than where she was. 15

The next morning Maddy stood in front of the counter at the airport, still not sure what she was going to do. She glanced up at the flights scheduled and saw one that stopped her wandering gaze. Right then she knew what she was going to do. It didn’t matter if it was the right or wrong choice, it was something that she needed to do. She bought her ticket and went to get her luggage. 16

. . .17

Maddy stood in front of a two story white house. It was surrounded by woods on 3 sides and the huge lawn was dotted with trees and shrubbery. The garden was neatly planted, overgrowing with vegetables. Flowers surrounded the path leading to the door. Maddy’s stomach knotted as she realized what she doing. Before she could change her mind she walked up and knocked on the door. An older woman in her fifties opened the door. ‘She’s barely even changed,’ Maddy thought as she studied the woman intently without a word. The woman looked confused at first but soon recognition filled her face. With glassy eyes Maddy’s mother enveloped her into a hug. A single tear rolled down Maddy’s face 18

“I’m home.”19