My family has lived in Old Westmont for close to 20 years. And the more I look back on my childhood, the harder it is to find the right words.
My childhood was beautiful. Of course, I’m lucky because I had the best parents and beautiful baby brothers. But growing up on Luzerne Street certainly contributed to the experience as well.
It’s beautiful and safe, and there is a sense of community that I have struggled to find in other places that I have lived since moving away.
It’s the quintessential place to raise a family. It’s like growing up in a Sears Catalog or on the set of a Hallmark Movie.
It’s watching Memorial Day Parades from your roof. It’s running from house to house on Halloween under the street lights with the crunch of leaves at your feet. It’s catching fireflies in your backyard at night.
It’s taking the dog for a quick walk, but coming home an hour later after stopping to talk with five neighbors along the way. It’s running next door to a neighbor’s because I need a cup of sugar. It’s walking to school and church on Sunday mornings through the rain, the sunshine, and the snow.
Of course, old Westmont is made up of gorgeous old homes that have charm and quirks. But it’s the people in side of those homes that make all the difference. Neighbors are friends, and friends are families.
While I have since moved away, I often think about coming back to raise a family of my own. It’s all I could have asked for and something I hope I am able to give my own kids one day.