Beth’s story

Beth Sewell

This summer I became homeless.

After living in Henderson for more than 20 years, my parents decided to make my life complicated by moving to McCuchanville, Ind. For those not familiar with the area picture this – cows and fields of hay.

My old home was comforting and warm. In every room something special happened that changed my life. Every tree in the yard had its own story of why it was planted.

When we left that house we left behind all the Christmas breakfast parties, the Fourth of July cookouts and the late night sleep-overs with friends.

Leaving that house was like saying goodbye to myself and everything I’ve ever known. Leaving the town I grew up in and moving into unfamiliar surroundings forced me to hold tight to the things I still had – friends from school and my fiance.

When I made the 30-minute drive from my old house to the new one, I realized I no longer had a home. The new house didn’t even have a bedroom for me. It was cold, uninviting, small and so cluttered.

I looked around the rooms wondering why my parents would ever want to move someplace so blank and awkward. It was obvious to me that I would never feel at home there.

My parents loved it though. It was their house to live in – family time was over. I was being forced to grow up, and I didn’t like it.

I know I’m a senior, and when I graduate in May I’ll hopefully have a “grown-up” job and a place of my own, but I really felt like I was being cheated out of 10 months of adolescence.

During finals week I should have the right to be like every other college student and go home to calm my nerves and comfort my spirit – now I can’t. I should be able to go home and not call ahead to get directions.

The only place I have of my own is Western. The only bedroom I have now is in Bowling Green.

That’s my story.

With my new found love for the Hill, I think it’s time I find out more about my fellow students – which is exactly why I decided to write the What’s Your Story? column.

Each week I will have the privilege of randomly selecting one lucky student to tell me about their life, their love and their thoughts on how unfair it is for your parents to move to Po-Dunk Nowhere, U.S.A. and conveniently forget to buy a house with enough bedrooms for their children.

I realize that the last story subject might apply to me, but it helps to think I’m not the only one.

So, watch for this column every Tuesday if you’re curious about all the interesting stories of students on this campus. If you look for this column and for some reason it’s not here, I probably got lost in a wheat field on my way “home” and couldn’t get the story in.

In any case, if your telephone rings and it’s me, feel free to tell me what your parents have done to force you to grow up; I promise to sympathize.

BEGITAL Each week, Beth picks a random person from the student directory and calls them to ask “What’s Your Story?” Her series runs every Tuesday. Beth can be reached at [email protected]. END ITAL