Dixieland Delight

Summer life in the small, country towns of Springfield, TN and Eddyville, KY. Town squares, barber shops, and one show theaters. Rolling hills, tractors, and fields of grain, soybean, corn and tobacco. The beautiful expanse of the bright blue sky dotted with fluffy white clouds. The blue birds fluttering through my grandmother’s flower garden. The smell of horses and hay. The echo of aluminum bats at the baseball diamond. The geese floating lazily on the rippling ponds. The 4th of July fireworks reflecting off the lake. The smell of leather in the tack room and grease in the shop. The taste of a home grown tomato. Or a hotdog at the ballpark. The long days that leave you swinging on the back porch with a glass of iced tea.

From my personal experience and from conversations I have had with others who have lived abroad, returning home is a mix of emotions. I believe this to be true. Coming home is something you have to learn to do. This is my third time to come home from abroad; I’m still a work in progress. My stories, my pictures, my memories tend to be lost in the great ocean of wonders that are Papua New Guinea. You see, when explaining the wonderful mysteries of ‘the land of the unexpected’ my own story within them seem to vanish.

While eating lunch with my family at a bustling meat-n-three in town, a man commented on the hand woven baskets I had brought home as gifts. My Aunt Julie explained the baskets were from a village along the Sepik River in Papua New Guinea. Nevertheless, this man was certain the baskets were American Indian artifacts because he had seen them while watching an episode of Chuck Norris.

Most times I felt right at home again. As if nothing had changed. To quote Alabama (the band, not the entire State), I was “born country and that’s what I’ll always be.” I was “raised up down home” chasing cows and playin’ in the dirt. Where it’s a sin to not sing every word of Dixieland Delight and Rocky Top. Where best friends know you better than you know yourself and family roots stretch further and wider than the Mississippi. And I hope its okay to share here on my public blog that our family tree is growing- horizontally, not vertically as some may say of us country folks! My brother Houston and sister-in-law Becky announced they are expecting their first child. The Ramsey family’s first grandchild. I am so thankful I was able to share their happiness!

There were other times when I felt like an alien from Mars. Or if you are from the South you would say, there were times when I looked like a deer in headlights. I was completely overwhelmed by traffic, Wal-mart, and menus. Just to name a few instances of over stimulation. It’s not that I have forgotten how to drive or that you can get your tires changed, eyes checked and pick up dog food, light bulbs and milk at a one-stop mega-mart. It’s when these are once a year occurrences that the ‘rat race’ can be a bit overwhelming. Do we really need 15 combo meal options? And don’t dare to ask anyone to hand over their blackberry. When I couldn’t find a payphone and asked a man if I could make a call, he turned and walked away from me like I had the plague. Guess it’s unheard of to not have a mobile in America in 2009.

It’s hard not to notice that America is wasteful and indulgent. We are the biggest consumers and the largest polluters. Each time I see clean, clear water running without a purpose, first I think of all the men, woman and children I have seen drinking, bathing and washing from rivers or various stagnant water sources. Then I think, You wouldn’t be letting all that water go to waste if you had to walk 2km to the well, pump it into a jerry can and carry it the 2kms back on your head.

Living in poverty brings a reality to the distinction between wants and needs. There were specific things I needed while back in the ‘land of plenty.’ Glasses, contacts, a visit to the dental hygienist. But being the American girl that I am, I couldn’t leave home without giving into a few of my favorite American indulgences! Coffee shops, bookstores, live music venues, breweries, key lime pie, pedicures, cream cheese….oh and walking through the streets at night!

Family, friends and key lime pie…these are the reasons I come home. “It’s my life, oh so right, my Dixieland delight!”