Like many of us fellows, I’ve traveled out of the city to be closer with family and friends for the holidays. Unsurprisingly, despite having traveled many hours and many miles from Mexicantown to Vermont, New York and New Jersey, Detroit is still on my mind.

Here is my attempt to compile some of what I’ve taken with me from Detroit:

  1. An appreciation for space: open lots, vacant factories and houses, industrial expanses of grass and concrete. I’m learning that the longer I call Detroit home, the more I’ve grown into a city that doesn’t rely on densely packed neighborhoods or an overly crowded downtown, but real, actual space.
  2. Self-awareness in a place. This means I am more apt to lock my car doors in small-town Vermont, and be aware of my surroundings as I walk the streets in Brooklyn. Not quite bad habits, in my opinion, yet also a point of reflection as we consider public safety and policing in Detroit and other urban areas.
  3. A want for gritty complications. I want to know the how and why of things as it relates to urban planning of new landscapes, new neighborhoods. I want to know what’s changing in my hometown in New Jersey and in my friend’s neighborhood in Brooklyn.
  4. A love of public art. It’s hard to avoid in an average Detroit day, and graffitied walls and industrial sized murals are some of my favorite aspects of the city. I love playful, artistic additions to street corners and old buildings and I wish there was more of it everywhere.
  5. Gratitude for the opportunities of the fellowship. As I give my elevator speech around the family Christmas table and to hometown friends, I feel increasingly proud to be a part of this program and its impact in a city most people know little about.

Since I moved to Detroit in March, I’ve left the city for weekend trips and vacations several times. I love the experience of coming and going between places and homes, and this holiday break has allowed me to piece apart more deeply my experience of making my new home in Detroit. As we enter 2015, I’m excited for lots of things and settling more into Detroit is one of them.