I wrote this post for my column over at Alabama Bloggers this past Tuesday but wanted to share it here also.
Life in a small town (technically ours is a city because of population, but we're still very much a small town) can be frustrating for some who move from a larger area. I've known many who have moved here and just couldn't handle it and moved away.
For me, I'm fairly content with living here. Let's face it when you grow up in a small community, 13 miles from a small town, not even incorporated and not even a caution light, almost anything is a step up. I do occassionally need to get to a big city (whether for shopping or just my sanity who knows)and luckily there are a few just 1 – 2 hours away.
I won't list all the reasons we like having a small town life, but I can assure you it's never dull. Sure news wise there might not be much going on, but if you pay attention there is a lot that makes life enjoyable.
One of the aspects I love is the time between mid-July and August. We start school here a bit earlier than most districts. We start a week earlier so we can have a week off in the Fall. I'm all for it. I love having a Fall Break.
Where was I? Oh yes. Why I love this time of year. The schools start sending out these important pieces of paper. The letters either lett you know when to pick up your child's schedule or for the lower grades these greatly anticipated envelopes contain THE NAME.
The name of your child's teacher. Make no mistake. The day those envelopes arrive it only takes a few seconds before the phone lines start jumping. Word spreads faster than wildfire in a small town. And if you happen to be a later delivery for your mail truck it's sheer torture.
"Who did y'all get?" (And they do mean y'all because the mom is just as much a part of getting the teacher as the child is.)
"Who is Mrs. S or Miss B?"
"Who did Jerry get?"
There have been a couple of years that a very good friend of mine has been out of town and once she heard that the letters were out I've had to go get her mail or let myself into her house to open the letter to find THE NAME.
Today was the day that parents received THE NAME for their younger children and I got the said call from a friend asking me about the teacher her child received whose name we did not recognize. This friend was on a trip with my aforementioned very good friend and when she got on the phone I knew what to ask. "You want me to go get your mail and open that letter don't you?" "You don't have to, but if you don't mind…" she replied.
Of course I didn't mind because I knew she would do the very same for me. And in the midst of it all there was some detective work in finding out who the new teacher was. It didn't take long. Just long enough for 3 short phone conversations.
And in 2 weeks it will all start again as the parents of the older elementary aged children receive their teacher assignments.
Yes, life in a small town can be quite entertaining. You may have to look for it but it's there. Thanks for letting me share this funny aspect of my small town life. I'm sure I'll be sharing more humorous situations of small town life again soon.
What about where you live? How does it differ in larger, more populated areas or even other small towns? I'm curious.
