Leaving the nest is always hard.
Whether it’s going on a vacation for the first time or heading off to college, leaving the nest and figuring out how to adapt to your new one is something everyone goes through.
Most recently, I left the Falcons’ Nest and safe haven of the University for an internship in the Chicago area. While anticipating to learn a lot from my internship itself, its was my lone five hour move that made even more of a difference.
Luckily, I had a few friends who helped me take flight once I got to the “Windy City.”
Despite having friends in town, I still ran into some turbulence along the way.
Believe it or not, not too many 21-year-olds lived in my new nest, an extended stay hotel 25 minutes northwest of the city.
Making new friends becomes slightly more difficult when one of your next-door neighbors is about 60-years-old while the others are a family of three. Not exactly the kind of people who are up for getting a drink around midnight like my roommates back in Bowling Green.
Aside from making new friends, I found out that I knew less about Chicago than I first realized. Without knowing every street and alley of the area like my Chicago-born counterparts, finding places and developing story ideas was a little bit harder than expected.
Although 12 weeks away from the nest might not seem like long, I’ve been able to learn the land running from every suburb into the city. Getting from points A to B is even a little easier now, partially just because my GPS is finally getting some good reception rather than constantly “recalculating.”
A roommate of mine always complained about moving halfway across the country to go to college and I never took him too seriously until I came to Chicago.
Making the choice to go somewhere far away, whether it’s two states over or on the other side of the country, is the right choice.
Leaving the nest helps people learn to adapt. It forces people to finally fly away from what they’re used to and try to withstand all the turbulence along the way.
It’s something everybody needs to consider when picking their next nest.
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