By Karen Esparza Posted October 16, 2013
Once a person reaches their senior year they are bombarded with questions. “What college are you going to?” “What are you going to major in?” “How are you going to pay for your studies?” “Will you stay in the dorms or are you renting?” When it comes to the question of where a person must make it a priority to leave their hometown. My case is based on the age-old “spreading your wings” notion; it consists of packing your stuff and flying away, even if you can only get as far as Reno.
Attend a JC college, or a trade school, or try to go to Harvard if that’s your dream, just get out of Winnemucca. Life after high school is an opportunity to experience new people, mentalities, cultures, etc. It’s impossible to encounter anything alien if you stay in the same place; in the same rut, all your life. A person has to see what the world has to offer first; then, if they make the decision to return home at least it’s with the certainty that it’s the ideal place for them. Don’t become the person that leaves home and then is forced to come back because they are stuck in their high school “glory” days. Many try to use the excuse that UNR is just another Winnemucca, but after talking to many graduates that now attend UNR that only seems to be the case if you seek out the same people you’ve associated with in high school.
Ultimately, years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did do, so it’s vital you leave home and adopt “the attitude that the pursuit of the truth is more vital than the pursuit of what society — your home — tells you is important”. Keep in mind that your hometown is a solid Plan Z, don’t be another example of a high school hero, life zero.
