By By MaryClaire Foster
As I write this, it’s Monday night and I’m sitting in my almost empty apartment thinking back over the past nearly 11 months.
Sounds like the beginning of a bad novel doesn’t it? I can’t help it though. I had no idea how hard it would be to let go of Atmore. Not that the people here have made it any easier. Several of you have even had the nerve to tell me you wish I wouldn’t leave, and here I am trying to move on.
But in all sincerity, I am so grateful for the time I’ve spent in Atmore. Had someone told me that first month here I would be feeling like this I would have been a little reluctant to believe them, but every week got better and better until finally I was no longer thinking of Trussville as home. What’s funny to me is even though I’ve been here almost a year and now think of it as home and view myself well settled, I still get asked if I’m the new girl at the paper.
More than anything, it has been the people I’ve met on this journey that make leaving the hardest part, because let’s be honest, while Atmore as a city certainly has its own unique draw and charms, it still is missing a couple of things, like a bookstore, that I consider a necessity in my life. However, I’ve realized I don’t even miss the infamous super center that the lack of had my loved ones so flabbergasted about my move here.
It might seem to some people that I am making my departure a little more dramatic than it should be, but I think that just is a testament to what kind of community this is. It is a dramatic departure to me because like I said last week, the notion of not seeing what have become the regular characters in my life is very unsettling, and to make matters worse, at a time when I’m just beginning to recognize who people are when I hear the town gossip.
I would like to say thank you to everyone at The Advance for being my first friends here. Besides that first day when I think I scared some people with my “I’m the new girl and need to make friends” morning cheerfulness, everyone has always been above and beyond someone I just work with.
But really, thank you to each and everyone of you for helping to make Atmore my home even for just a little bit.
I’ve learned that just because you fall in love doesn’t mean it’s always going to end happily ever after, but you can always look back and be grateful for the time you had.
MaryClaire Foster is formerly the news editor for The Atmore Advance. She can now be reached via email at foster175@gmail.com.