Where I'm From

“I am from a town where Anya is the best!”- Directly written by Kori Hixson.   Where am I from?  Wait, why am I asking you?  I should be the one doing the explaining.  So here it goes:  I am from Aurora.  That’s it, I’ve lived there my whole life.  So does that answer your question?  Does that answer my question?  Hmmm...

Well, as stated earlier, I have grown up in Aurora all of my life.  I have lived in two houses, one at 1318 11th Street  and one at 405 Jennifer RD.  I loved my old house on 11th Street.  Me and Jared shared so many memories there.  We had our fort in the back yard that always had an adventure go on or a war to battle.  We had many experiences running through the sprinkler, racing around with our 2 dogs, Beau and Jaxson, golfing on the 30 yd. backyard fairway, and constantly getting into fights.  That may be what I remember most is the fights.  Like the time the toy dinosaur went through the second story window.  And like the time I got my head cracked open by a golf club.  Those were the good old days.  And then came the birth of my brother Kyle.  And then he received most of the attention.  This solved mine and Jared's friendship rather quickly because we had to team up in order to survive whatever may come next.

So then we moved in to the house where we live now.  I really enjoy this house because I Jared and I get our own section of the basement.  There is also so much more room for activities.  The house sits on an acre and a third.  There is a cornfield in our backyard but we are still only five blocks away from the school.  It is my little piece of the country that I get to enjoy while still living in the town.  Sometimes in late fall, we are able to eat dinner on the back step and watch the combine practically turn around in our lawn.  besides that we have some ballin’ chickens in a sweet coop that I built.  And the party barn that might get done some day or another.  And when it is done, it will be one of my favorite places to go.

Being from Aurora, everyone knows everyone.  I can go to the grocery store and have people say hi and ask how I am doing.  I work at Schneider’ Hardware and there are always people coming in and asking about me or about the game the night before.  It isn’t only that you are known, but that people genuinely are concerned about and care for you.  That right there isn’t found in many places around the country.  In Aurora, neighbors aren’t afraid to lend a hand to one another and teachers go the extra mile to make sure that their students get a good education.

I am also from corn.  Obviously Nebraska is known for it’s corn and in Aurora, you can drive for miles without seeing much else.  But corn isn’t just the green sprouts in the spring or the drying leaves at harvest, it is a lifestyle.  Even I, a “city boy”, am impacted by all of the corn.  Yes, it affects the economy, but it also represents detassling.  Once I turn twelve, it seemed like a right of passage that I became a member of a crew.  Not only are the hours and the fields long, but also the corn is wet and sharp.  From 5:30 AM, i looked foward to being able to take a shower shortly followed by a nap.  It is something that goes along with the land, and i think that it is a fair trade.

I am from the outdoors.  From running through the creek bottom, to exploring the woods, to spending time hunting and fishing, I love the environment.  It gives me a very relaxed feeling to walk through the tall prairie grass trying to stir up a pheasant and to sit and listen to the many songbirds.  I enjoy helping out with SOAR during the summer because I get to share my love for nature with younger kids and help to inspire them to love nature as I do.  Even doing housework outside is fun because you still get the feeling of the warm sun and the cool breeze.

Lastly, I am from a loving family.  My parents are both very hardworking and help me in every way they can to succeed at what ever I may be doing at the time.  Even though my brothers constantly annoy me and try to fight me, I have come to realize that they will be my best friends because they care about the same things that I do.  We have big sit down meals three or four times a week so it brings us even closer together.  I think that is what it is and why I have fallen in love with this place: my community, my location, my passion, and most of all my family.