Humans of Swarthmore: Stories of Belonging
Associate Editor Satya Nelms
I joke with my sons that I could walk around Swarthmore with a blindfold on and still know where I am. And I probably could. I let my mind drift as I walk to the library, the Co-op, my in-laws’ house. My body knows the way. My feet recognize the shifts in the sidewalk. My ears pick up on the pace of traffic, giggles of children being pushed on swings, chickens shuffling around in their coop.
So many of the faces I see are familiar. Whether we know each other’s names or not, we raise our hands in greeting, lift our chins, smile. I find myself surprised when I see someone for the first time.
Humans of Swarthmore is an effort to help us get better acquainted with the people who make up this place we call home. What actually makes us a community and not just people who all happen to live in the same place? What is it that binds us together?
Humans of Swarthmore: Ptah Osayande
Ptah Osayande on the street where he grew up. Photo: Satya Nelms
I’m the sixth generation of my family to live in Swarthmore. I’ve lived in other places too, but I grew up in Swarthmore. When I was growing up, my grandfather was the chief of police. I just felt like all of Swarthmore was my backyard, and in a way it is, it’s everybody’s backyard that lives here.
Having so many relatives who live here throughout my whole life, and being able to go to their house at any point — my mom always calls our neighborhood a giant mansion with many rooms — that’s definitely something that was nice growing up. I could go over an aunt’s house, a cousin’s house, my grandmother’s house.
Conversely, as I get older, people move in, people move out, and as I come back to Swarthmore from living in Massachusetts and in California, I can see how a lot of things have changed. It feels like ‘Oh, nobody knows who I am anymore.’ Not that that’s a negative thing.
The same thing that’s happening in Swarthmore, it’s everywhere. People move in, people pass away, and then, that’s just life. But I’m still glad to be here.
The trees, they’re still here. It’s still Swarthmore.
