Americana. That little slice of life that is uniquely American. No where else in the world do people celebrate, mourn and remember the way we do here in the United States.
I am a city girl. Born and raised in the city. I lived in the suburbs for awhile, but the city was just a short drive down the highway. For the last 16 years, I have been living in the bedroom community of a much smaller metropolitan area than the one in which I was raised and lived for the first 26 years of my life. I left the city; nevertheless, the city has never left me. 10 years ago, we went even more remote and moved out to the "country." Natives kept telling us were going to go crazy driving back and forth from home to town and vice versa everyday. They were talking to commuters who regularly drove 45 minutes one way on the interstate to work 5 days a week. A 10 minute drive through the country to town is nothing!
We live in a commonwealth state. We have villages, townships and boroughs. Our specific area has all 3. The school district encompasses 40 square miles. Despite this, the population is only large enough to support 1 high school, 1 middle school and as of the 2011-2012 school year, 4 elementary schools. Class sizes average well under 300 students. So we are talking small town. Where I grew up, we had 5 public high schools, 1 Catholic high school and 1 Protestant high school, averaging over 300 students per class per public high school! In 16 years, I have yet to get over the culture shock!
There is one big thing I have relished all these years in this small town: the way the community celebrates. Yesterday was Memorial Day. Every year, a parade is followed by a Memorial Day service held in the Middle School auditorium. I will be forever amused by some of the parade entries. Besides the High School band, the churches, businesses, civic organizations and leaders of the community, every firetruck, ambulance and municipal/township service vehicles pass us by on the parade route. If those vehicles ever fail to show, the parade would last about 30 minutes. This is truly small town America and small town pride.
The Memorial Day service is expressly small town. It opens with a prayer proceeded by the Pledge of Allegiance (led by a veteran) and the National Anthem. A high school student from the graduating class and a dignitary speak. Patriotic songs are played and sung. Our veterans and current military service members are honored. This year, a video was presented to memorialize those who died in service to protect our freedoms. The tribute was very moving.
I like the way small town America honors and remembers our military service members. Respect, dignity and sanctity for life are at the core. We as a nation desire peace, not war. War is an ugly means, sometimes necessary, to achieve peace. Our current enemies choose to "honor" their dead by shooting guns in the air and kidnapping, torturing and murdering our own.
Despite the fact that I have never really adjusted (or expect to at this point) to small town life, I am better able to appreciate it. I will someday move back to a city with all its hustle, bustle and noise and will yearn for a weekend in the country. Along with my husband, I have happily raised 2 daughters in a small town. It is a good life to live.
Now, pass me a slice of that apple pie.
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