28-year-old New York resident Michelle Walsh recently confirmed that she finally made the decision to move back to her hometown of Oak Park, IL this summer in order to be closer to her family’s pool.
“Living in the big city has been great,” Michelle said. “But it can definitely get lonely after a while. Plus, there’s like zero opportunity to chill by the pool here.”
Michelle told reporters that while the decision was one she’d been considering for a long time, ultimately, the choice was easy.
“I’m glad I had the chance to live far away from my hometown,” she said. “But I realized I don’t want to keep missing out on big life events, like barbecues by the pool, or my little cousin’s pool parties, or just spending quality time with my parents as they get older, sitting poolside in those nice, plush lounge chairs. Those are the things that really matter to me.”
Michelle added that growing up is all about recognizing what matters most to you and choosing to prioritize it.
“I realized that, for me, visiting home once or twice a year wasn’t enough – especially since the pool is closed when I visit for Christmas,” she said in a statement given while swishing her feet around in her parents’ pool. “I want to enjoy those small, every day, seemingly insignificant moments with my parents.”
She continued, saying, “I don’t know how many days they have left on earth, and once they die I’ll have to put the pool, along with the rest of their estate, up for sale. How many jumps off the diving board do I have left? How many beats does my father’s heart still have in it? How many rings can I grab off the bottom of the deep end before the house is put on the market and I have to go back to chilling on industrial rooftops in the summer?”
Michelle’s family said that they were overjoyed to have her back, and that the vibe of the pool deck had always felt like it was missing something when she was gone.
“Michelle’s presence is invaluable. We really missed her,” said Michelle’s dad, Terry. “She’s always cleaning leaves out of the pool, and cutting up fruit to eat by the pool, and asking us to rate her handstands while she’s in the pool. Her mom and I really missed that – we barely even use the pool when she’s not here.”
At press time, Michelle had already begun to create irreplaceable memories with her parents, like doing a cannonball into the pool and getting yelled at by her mom for being “too splashy.”
