Exploration Essay: AP Literature and Composition I

Traverse City, Michigan

Life has never been simple for me. I have never had one place I could call “home”, because I have never lived in one place permanently. Every time I become accustomed to my new living situation, I must pack up and leave again. What I call home is not the typical home for someone who has lived in the same area their entire life.  My home is a place that I travel to every summer. Michigan has become my home. It evokes a sense of nostalgia because of the memories that rush to my head when thinking of Traverse City, a small community on the shores of Lake Michigan in the northern part of the lower peninsula of Michigan. It is a tradition. My father vacationed to Traverse City as a child and once he married my mother, they decided to keep up this family tradition. Instead of renting out different condos or vacationing on multiple lakes, they decided to make this vacation place something more tangible by buying a house on Lake Leelanau.

My dad loves his career, but frequent moves has become one of the downsides of his career. So, our vacation home would become the permanent home that my siblings and I could always be rooted to despite our relocating to new places whenever my dad changed jobs. After moving around several times, Traverse City is the only place that has remained stable within my life; it has remained unchanged. In my eyes, it is the place I grew up. Traverse City and our house on the banks of Lake Leelanau is my childhood home. There are so many elements from Traverse City that make it seem like home.

Traverse City is a place like no other. It is so unique! Despite its small population size, it is full of interesting quirks and fun energies. Traverse City is the cherry capital of the world! Local farmers grow more cherries than anywhere else in the world.  Every summer, my family and I go to one of the nearby areas with cherry trees and go cherry picking. The tart crimson cherries are an important part of every significant Traverse City meal. The cherries are incorporated into many dishes: pies, jams, pancakes, ice cream flavors, and cakes. When my younger cousins eat some of the cherries, the crimson juice run down their faces, making them look like vampires. The Traverse City Cherry Festival celebrates the community’s role as the cherry capital of the world every year in late June and working its way into early July. We normally buy cherry pies at this festival after watching the famous dog jumping contest hosted at the festival. On the Fourth of July, my family has the tradition of taking part in a pie eating contest with the hope of pie-ing a family member of their choice as the winning prize. Another special flavor from this place is the Leelanau Raclette cheese. I have always considered myself to be a cheese connoisseur and this cheese has become a distinctive element to my vacation there every summer. It also is one of my favorite cheeses to eat as an appetizer with a baguette slice.  One of my favorite places to go to eat in Traverse City is “Moomers”, which was voted by Good Morning America as the best ice cream shop in America. My family and I also enjoy 45th Parallel, a breakfast place located exactly halfway between the Equator and the North Pole. They have the best buttered sour dough toast to accompany any breakfast meal.

Another key landmark to Traverse City, is a shore with miles and miles of sand This landmark is called the “Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes”. Long ago, massive glaciers amplified river valleys to sculpt extensive basins in the Great Lakes. The glaciers also established dunes formed by glacial sands on high plateaus. The scenic views you can get from the top of the established dunes are spectacular! Travelling to the top of the dune to Lake Michigan, you are about 450 feet from the ground. The height is crazy, but well worth the view. For as long as I can remember, my family has come to this landmark every year. We climb up the sand dunes and roll down. Some of my fondest memories as a child are from the Sleeping Bear Dunes. Legend has it that a mother bear assisted her two cubs in finding shelter to escape a forest fire, hence the name “Sleeping Bear Dunes”. I have always loved this legend because it showed how loyal the mother bear was to her children and highlighted to me the importance of family in a different light.

These special flavors and fun places are only small pieces that make up Traverse City as a home. Being on a lake, near beaches and orchids is always fun. Yet, the best part about Traverse City is the family tradition that we have created that no other place could ever try to replace. Traverse City is the home to cherries, Leelanau Raclette, the Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes, one of the best ice cream shops in America, and my permanent and forever home.

-Stephanie Sandra