I Grew Up in a Small Town
Laura: I grew up in a very small town. Um, we said it was in the middle of nowhere. It was only 150 people, uh, surrounded by farms.
Laura: There was one street with a post office and a church and a park. And, uh, lots of houses and nothing else really. No stores, nothing like that.
Laura: Um, fortunately though, my best friend lived right across the street so we spent a lot of time together.
Laura: We were allowed to go around town on our bikes, um, without any grown-ups around, so we did have a lot of independence because it was quite safe.
Laura: When I was a teenager, it was a little less fun because we had to drive quite a distance to get anywhere, so it was a little bit isolating. Uh, but I did learn to drive very early as a result.
Laura: And um, overall though, I would say it was a great childhood.
Vocabulary:
in the middle of nowhere – a place that is very far away from any towns or cities, “Their cabin is in the middle of nowhere, so there are no stores nearby.”
surrounded by – having something all around you on every side, “The small house was surrounded by tall green trees.”
fortunately though – luckily; used to show that a good thing happened in a situation, “It started to rain; fortunately though, I had an umbrella.”
independence – the freedom to make your own choices and do things without help, “Moving into his own apartment gave him a lot of independence.”
teenager – a young person who is between 13 and 19 years old, “My older brother is a teenager, but he still likes to watch cartoons.”
quite a distance – a long way; a far distance to travel, “We had to walk quite a distance to reach the train station.”
isolating – making you feel lonely and cut off from other people, “Living alone in a big city can feel very isolating at first.”
as a result – because of something that happened before, “He forgot his coat and, as a result, he caught a cold.”
overall though – looking at everything together; in general, “The food was a bit late, but overall though, it was a great dinner.”
childhood – the time of your life when you are a child, “She has many happy memories from her childhood.”
lovely – very nice, pleasant, or beautiful, “Thank you for the flowers; they are absolutely lovely.”
get a chance to – to have the opportunity or time to do something, “I hope I get a chance to visit Japan next summer.”
on their own – alone or without any help from other people, “The children are now old enough to walk to school on their own.”