Dear Westampton...

Memory 1: The "beginning."

My very first memory of my hometown Westampton, was sitting in the backseat of a car. My Dad drove around the high schools and other blocks, familiarizing himself with the neighborhood. It was night-time, and I distinctly recall the bright headlights of our Honda.

I was around 6 when we went to the open house. It was just like every other open house; a couple of snacks, business cards, and LOTS of talking. After our kind realtor took us to her office, there was chatter about a mortgage that I didn't quite understand. It seemed like an eternity but finally, she gave us the garage key. We drove to our street, thrilled at one thing: the house was ours. When we arrived, I walked around in my pretty pink dress, as joyous as a bee in a flower garden. Throughout the happiness, one thing became urgent: I had to pee. I mean, really had to pee. I ran to the beige-colored bathroom and did my business. I looked over to the left and right. There was no tissue paper! Tell me, what is a 6-year-old girl to do when there's no tissue paper, not even paper towels in a bathroom? Use what you've got. And that's what I did. I sat there shamelessly, using the only thing I had, my dress. And that was the first time I used the bathroom in the house on Westampton.

By the time we got our few things settled, it had been night again. On the move from Trenton to Westampton, we packed lightly. We'd (my parents, of course) planned to leave everything behind in Trenton, and buy everything new with the house, meaning, we had nothing. So besides using my dress as toilet paper, we also slept on the floor, using the flashlight of Mom's phone as a light.

Memory 2: A year later.

Now, keep in mind that this had been 8 years ago, so the day-to-day memories have been long forgotten. This brings us to a year later, 2013. Because my middle sister and I shared our room, we often played one of our favorite games. This particular game consisted of 3 things: a bunk bed, *check* a blue, fluffy blanket, *check* and swimsuits. During the game, we'd put on our best swimsuits, lay a big, fluffy blanket on our floor, and dive from our bunk bed. Funnily enough, we had a pool in our backyard. Anyway, we did this ALL day, while listening to my Music Together and Michael Jackson CDs. In the fall of that year, I'd started 1st grade. I had so many new friends, and a new dog, Gito.

Memory 3: Black Annie.

There's not much to say for this one, but I watched Annie (2014 version) and I SOBBED when Quvenzhané Wallis sang the song, "Opportunity!"

Memory 4: The 2015 era.

Ugh, 2015. To everyone else, this might've been a pretty neutral year. But looking back at 8 years old me, this was VERY cringey. That year was infested with lip-synching Musical.ly makers (a.k.a. Musers) and the ancient "whip and nae-nae" dance. One night, I remember like it was yesterday, my sister and I had a dance battle. I was busting my favorite moves, like whipping and "bop." The only problem being, she didn't know about the dance battle. (I won.)

Memory 5: Moving out

Fast forward two years. Everyone was each go to our parents' room and answer the question, "If we got a divorce, who would you want to live with?" At the time, Mom had been more moody and petty than ever, so everyone said dad. The next week or so, our parents gather us in the living room and Dad speaks.

"I'm going to be moving out... It's an apartment in Eastampton..."

I thought he was going to leave me forever. The conversation ended with me in hysterical tears.

Memory 6: My time at the Burlington County Library.

While living in Westampton, I've read more than 1,000 books. I was checking our new books by the month, up to 10 books per visit!

Memory 7: The horrendous 3-grade year.

My goodness, was 3rd grade a horrible year. My only memory of 3rd grade is just cursing. I'd just learned cursing and boy, I swore up and down, side to side, like a sailor! I cursed with my friends and sister, and we were all misguided into believing that was cool. Luckily, I don't do that shit anymore.

Memory 8: Kip. And Peaches.

Warning: emotional roller coaster!!! Enter at your own risk!

On my 10th birthday, I got off of my bus and headed into my house like normal. When I was in the hallway, there were printed-out paw prints and a box in the middle of the floor. I knew that something was going on because usually, my mom and dad would still be at work when I came home from school, but instead, my parents along with most of my siblings but one were all there. I eagerly headed towards the box. To my surprise, instead of a cute dog being there, a stuffed animal lied inside the box. My lips frowned like an upside-down rainbow. Impulsively, I went to the front door, looking to throw the box onto my porch. Simultaneously, the doorbell rang. I put the box down, and opened the door, when the sibling who appeared missing, held another box containing the cutest puppy you could imagine. His name was Kip. He was a Yorkie and poodle mix. He had brown legs and a brown face, but a black-colored backside. And, he had signature ears; one floppy, one perky. Although he was never fully potty trained and occasionally had accidents, we still had a lovely time together. The first few weeks after I got Kip, I hosted a naming ceremony. The final names were going to be Midnight or Kip, and what a big surprise! I chose to keep the name, Kip. We would play fetch together, like in movie montages. He loved to run in our backyard.

At night, 6 months later, I let Kip outside my yard. 15 minutes go by, and I’m still waiting for him to finish using the bathroom. I sense that something isn’t right, and rightfully so. I look around to find him, but he was nowhere to be found. An hour later, my whole family is frantically searching for Kip. However, we couldn’t look for long because my parents had work and me and my siblings I all had school that next day. Weeks go by, and Kip is still M.I.A. By that time, we’d made missing dog posters.

The worst part of him being missing was the fact that one of my sisters’ friends saw him, but couldn’t pick him up because the bus was already in from of their house. Nevertheless, we kept looking for him. A couple more days pass by. My 4th-grade teachers were emailed about the situation, which got me out of homework assignments. The story goes that, one night, my brother heard scratching at the back door, and when he turned on the lights, Kip was there, like an angel! I had been asleep at the time, but my dad woke me up saying, “There’s a four-legged friend waiting for you downstairs.”

Half asleep, I dragged myself downstairs and there was Kip, covered in ticks and scratches. The next day, we took him to the vet, so they could take off the ticks. Kip was all better.

The exact date: July 9, 2018. I was in my oldest sister's room, taking pictures of Kip. A few hours later, Kip escaped outside. Near my development, there’s a piece of land. Kip loved to run around there. The only downside is that the main road is close to the land. We called his name, praying that he be obedient, for his own sake.

My dad and my middle sister told me to go get the dog treats we had because maybe he would be lured if we used treats. So I sprinted as fast as I could to receive the treats. Before I could even go back to the piece of land, I saw sobbing. I knew the worst had happened, and I was devastated. My middle sister and Dad just witnessed Kip being run over by a black Toyota. The man in the Toyota kept driving as unknowing that he just crushed my universe.

After a couple of months of being dejected, I went back to begging my parents to buy me a dog. A month or two after Kip’s funeral, my mom dropped my sisters and me at the library. We’d been there for over 2 hours and we were becoming tired and annoyed. When our mom finally picked us up, we came home, and for the second time, I was surprised with an itty bitty puppy with grey fur and perky ears. We named her Peaches.

How was the ride?

Future Memory: Right now.

Of course, my entire 8 years of living in Westampton can't be summarized into 8 parts. However, my community made me into the person I am today, and I'm proud to live in Westampton. Now, you're probably wondering "Ok, we just read through your ENTIRE life story! What was the answer of a hometown feature?" The answer: everything. My home, bathroom, movies, school, Kip, Peaches, library, and now writing on Vocal, has shaped me into the human I am today. Thank you for reading through my memories, I hope you enjoyed it!