Small town to Big city

When I was growing up my brother and I were adamant about one thing: we would never live in a big city. We loved growing up in a small town. Where I grew up I couldn't walk down the street with out running into a family friend. I went to school and knew I always had support because I knew the teachers on a personal level. I enjoyed knowing who was nearby and knowing what was going on. There is a culture in a small town in which you either know the person, know somewone they are related to or are related to them yourself. When I went to college I had all intentions of returning home or to another small town. Today I find myself living in the city. Actually, so is my Brother. And neither of us would change our circumstances. Yes, we miss the small town...but we love living where we are. As I went through the drive thru window at the pharmacy last night and the pharmacist recognized me...I was reminded of my small town. 
I miss having friends on my street, second mothers who would take me in, feed me lunch and let me relax at their home. However now I enjoy living on a diverse street where I want to get to know my neighbors and learn from their experiences.
I miss living in a place where there was one stop light in the school district, the grocery store was 20 minutes away and you could literally walk down the middle of the road with out getting hit. Now I enjoy hearing the banter of the city, spend time riding the bus and observing the people riding with me, I hear the car horns and trains, buses and cars all night long.
As a child I walked across a field and risked stepping in cow pies to visit a friend. NOw I walk through the "ghetto" and risk getting hit on.
I definitely miss the small town I grew up in and all of the close knit craziness...I wish at times I could move out to the country where there are more cows than people and privacy is the norm. Where you wake up to birds and other animals singing...but I guess I just needed to reflect on this.
To the family of community that raised me...thank you. I miss you. I wish I could transport all of you to the city I now live in.