After 17 years and 8,299.32 miles, senior Asheley Buchwalter wound up in Greensburg—a small, old town with a city-like aspect.  Although Buchwalter is new and relatively an outsider, she has lived in seven different states, so surely she can handle Pennsylvania.
   “As an elementary school student you can walk up to someone and ask them to be friends and they’ll say yes,” Buchwalter said. “If you do that in high school, people will look at you like you’re crazy. I found that out through the experience of moving.”
   Buchwalter’s life began in Colorado, where she resided for 18 months.  From there came Spokane, Washington.  She lived there 18 months as well, and then moved to Middlefield, Ohio.  By the time Buchwalter was in kindergarten, she found herself in Illinois.
   “It’s harder to move basically cross-country than a couple of blocks,” Buchwalter said.
   In Illinois, Buchwalter lived in two different towns.  Though her stay was longer than usual, Buchwalter was moving yet again by age 10.  Next was Sicklerville, New Jersey, where she remained for 11 months.  After that, the Buchwalter family was off to Wahoo, Nebraska.
   “Yeah, population three thousand including the cows,” Buchwalter laughed.
   Nebraska was Buchwalter’s shortest stay of 10 months.  Then she moved 1,518.9 miles to Bradenton, Florida.  Buchwalter lived there for about a year, and then moved to Parrish, Florida, where she had her longest stay of five years.  When her father moved to Pennsylvania, Buchwalter found herself trekking across the U.S. once again.  She left her mother, brother, family and friends in Florida to follow her dad to the Keystone State.
   “I like the distance I’m at now,” Buchwalter said.
   Buchwalter doesn’t have a very good relationship with her mother, so she thought it better to live with her dad when he found a job in Pennsylvania.  Her parents have been separated for a while, but Buchwalter said they are trying to get back together. Having moved 11 times, Buchwalter doesn't plan to pack her bags again.
   "It's my senior year," Buchwalter said. "I won't be moving back."
   In all the places that Buchwalter has moved, she was more used to the aspect of towns that were modern and updated. She doesn't like how outdated Greensburg is. Most of the buildings have been here for a very long time and she wasn't used to this. However, there are parts of the area which Buchwalter enjoys.
   “I like how Greensburg has all the qualities of a small town,” Buchwalter said.  “But it still has the big-town shopping and food.”
   On Buchwalter’s first day of school at GS she was just another student.  It wasn’t until the third day in that she began to make friends.  Buchwalter started to eat lunch with other students and talk to classmates.  Still, she doesn’t go out on the weekends with anyone, and her conversations with others are limited.
   “It's not like I have inside jokes with anyone,” Buchwalter said, relating an aspect of being a new student.
   Buchwalter said that at GS, the kids have known each since a young age and grew up together.  When she talks with her friends, the conversation is more present-day.  Buchwalter doesn’t share stories from the past with students at GS.
   “I think it’s easier to move closer,” Buchwalter said.  “You can still have that contact with people you once knew.”
   When a person moves far away, she has to pay the costs and travel all the way to the place where she has family and friends.  Moving far away poses difficulties for relationships in some cases.  Needless to say, Buchwalter keeps in contact with a few old friends through Facebook and texting.
   Often times, Buchwalter compares GS to her old schools.  In Nebraska, someone was assigned to show Buchwalter around school and introduce her to the teachers and students.  There were about 60 kids in each of her classes in Nebraska—much different from GS which has about 20 to 25 students in each class.  Schools do have their differences.
   “I was comparing the dances to each other,” Buchwalter said, having gone to the Holiday Dance in December. “Dances at South East High School [in Bradenton, Florida] consisted mostly of Hispanic music.”
   Buchwalter has traveled all over the U.S., becoming an experienced mover.  Pennsylvania is just another brief home.  After the school year ends, Buchwalter will be off to start her life as an adult—choosing what she will do and where she will go.
   “No matter how many times you move, it doesn’t get any better,” Buchwalter said. "This move was only easier due to certain circumstances."

From 8,000 Miles...

Cassandra Brennan & Laura Rosner