Comments on: Northerners, Southerners, Midwesterners, oh my! http://reesabrown.com/2010/06/14/northerners-southerners-midwesterners-oh-my/ the life and writerly times of Reesa Brown Mon, 21 May 2012 23:02:53 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: Mary http://reesabrown.com/2010/06/14/northerners-southerners-midwesterners-oh-my/#comment-1336 Mary Sat, 26 Jun 2010 19:58:48 +0000 http://reesabrown.com/?p=860#comment-1336 I've always lived in large metro areas like Miami, Altanta, and Dallas; however, I've visited at length with relatives in small towns. I much prefer the big cities as there are no limitations; you can get anything and everything you want. No lack of stores, restaurants, theaters, types of entertainment, sports venues, etc. So many choices! Also, the educational venues are vast. And, like in small towns, there was much in the way of nurturing as I grew up. There were "country" revival meetings (even though they came to "town"), multi-family ice cream suppers, and block parties. Neighbors helped neighbors. All the parents in the neighborhood helped to raise all the kids. You minded all the moms and dads in the neighborhood just like you minded your own. The latter-day concept of "it takes a village" to raise a child was not just the lip-service then as now. It was real. I am a true Southerner in every way. Having visited relatives in the north ahd having done business there, I much prefer the South. The manners of the South have always been more polite, more firm, and more true to me. The culture of the South is, for me, more genteel, refined, unpretentious, and elegant. I am very proud of my southern heritage and our way of life in the South. I’ve always lived in large metro areas like Miami, Altanta, and Dallas; however, I’ve visited at length with relatives in small towns. I much prefer the big cities as there are no limitations; you can get anything and everything you want. No lack of stores, restaurants, theaters, types of entertainment, sports venues, etc. So many choices! Also, the educational venues are vast. And, like in small towns, there was much in the way of nurturing as I grew up. There were “country” revival meetings (even though they came to “town”), multi-family ice cream suppers, and block parties. Neighbors helped neighbors. All the parents in the neighborhood helped to raise all the kids. You minded all the moms and dads in the neighborhood just like you minded your own. The latter-day concept of “it takes a village” to raise a child was not just the lip-service then as now. It was real. I am a true Southerner in every way. Having visited relatives in the north ahd having done business there, I much prefer the South. The manners of the South have always been more polite, more firm, and more true to me. The culture of the South is, for me, more genteel, refined, unpretentious, and elegant. I am very proud of my southern heritage and our way of life in the South.

]]> By: Holly Eliot http://reesabrown.com/2010/06/14/northerners-southerners-midwesterners-oh-my/#comment-1332 Holly Eliot Sat, 26 Jun 2010 01:40:10 +0000 http://reesabrown.com/?p=860#comment-1332 I'll tell you what I've noticed about small towns: everyone is more civil. This is because even if you divorce someone, the kids run back and forth between houses, and you all wind up sitting together to watch the parade. Exes and half-relatives have potlucks together. Everybody has to get along because there is no anonymity whatsoever. Grudges just get worn down by proximity. This also cuts down on crime. And the need for lawyers. A farmer can make a verbal agreement to buy land in the morning and plow it that afternoon. Everybody knows the other guy's character through long association. Grown men tell stories on each other from childhood. If you didn't grow up in this atmosphere, you'd smother. If you did, it feels absolutely natural. I’ll tell you what I’ve noticed about small towns: everyone is more civil. This is because even if you divorce someone, the kids run back and forth between houses, and you all wind up sitting together to watch the parade. Exes and half-relatives have potlucks together. Everybody has to get along because there is no anonymity whatsoever. Grudges just get worn down by proximity.

This also cuts down on crime. And the need for lawyers. A farmer can make a verbal agreement to buy land in the morning and plow it that afternoon. Everybody knows the other guy’s character through long association. Grown men tell stories on each other from childhood. If you didn’t grow up in this atmosphere, you’d smother. If you did, it feels absolutely natural.

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