In the early 90's, I decided to take additional college courses given potential career advancement opportunities at my place of work. My young family and I were new to the area and had recently purchased our first house one year earlier in La Puente. In search of a nearby community college, I came across MSAC. Upon visiting the campus I was thrilled to find that MSAC offered all but one of the necessary courses.
My class schedule required driving to campus 2 to 3 times per week. Each time I made the drive, I recall noticing how tranquil the surroundings became as I neared the campus. After a few months of making this trip I declared to myself, "someday, my family and I will move to Walnut." Admittedly, it was somewhat of a pipe dream at the time. And the more I gave it thought, the further from reach the dream appeared. I recall deluding my thinking to, "well, maybe we'll move from La Puente to West Covina and finally . . . to wonderful Walnut!"
Three years after that "self declaration," as if by some stroke of magic, luck, good Karma - you name it - all the necessary elements miraculously fell into place. In 1994, my family and I sold our house in La Puente, by-passed West Covina and purchased our house in Walnut. Our new home was located on a flat hillside cul-de-sac just above MSAC. Friendly neighbors were quick to make us feel welcomed. My three elementary school aged daughters made many friends of diverse cultural backgrounds, many whom are still close to them to this day.
As with our children, my wife and I also made many friends within our community through Neighborhood Watch Programs, AYSO Soccer, or by simply going to the MSAC gym. For years I hiked the Skyline Trail on a regular basis with our dog, something my daughters also took up as they got older.
Sadly, today my wife and I are no longer together, and our children are off on their own. Our house is for sale and I now live in the community I once by-passed. (Funny how that worked out!)
Raising my family in Walnut for 19 years was one of the best things that happened to us. Although we must now move on with our lives from Walnut, many good and wholesome memories have been permanently etched in our minds and hearts. We leave thankful and appreciative for the time we lived therein, for the tranquil surroundings we enjoyed, and for the many friends we made along the way.
: )
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