away from home

 Took a short drive yesterday and the Bradford pear trees are in bloom, along with the Forsythia. The daffodils are always first and send out the invitations to all the other flowers of spring. The temperature was into the 70's, a farmer was fertilizing his fields and there was green everywhere. I hear the perch are running and the riverbank was lined with fishermen. I even heard the sound of a mower off in the distance. The world is waking up again, rubbing its' eyes and yawning.

 The cold hasn't left, this heat wave is just a tease. But I opened the windows yesterday allowing that fresh air to rush into the room. Riding the air currents are the sounds of the outdoors, they come almost as memories having been shuttered for so long. My cat rushes to the window now whenever a car passes by or a bird begins to chirp. He's curious too, what is that? Outside is coming in, coming home.

 The little league parade can't be far off although I've not heard any plans as of yet. Greensboro and the Ridgely alternate hosting that event each year. I'm not certain whose turn it is. The last few years parades have been limited or not held at all. There aren't a lot of events held in Greensboro in the first place. Whoville, during the Christmas season is the big attraction, although the fishing derby for the kids draws a good crowd. I saw where the rodeo is going to return this year, a fundraiser for the firehouse. I'm looking forward to that.

 That's life in a small town and I like it. I'm not one to be involved in many community events and I don't volunteer for anything. Some of that stems from being in the Navy. Navy means, "never again volunteer yourself." I've pretty much taken that to heart. I've lived here for over twenty five years but I'm still an outsider. I have no connections to any prior generations of greensboroites. In my hometown we call that being from away. If you weren't born and raised in the community, you were from away. That's what I am in Greensboro, from away. And I'm a Yankee, which can go either way here in this border state. All depends upon who you are talking to. But I'm not complaining, I like living here, it's still a quiet little town.

  I do think I'm seeing the last of it though as the developers build, the farmers selling their farms and the "commuters" settle in. Some call it growth. It is supposed to be a good thing, but I question that sometimes. Sometimes a "growth" isn't such a great thing and needs to be removed. Sometimes that growth saps the heart of the host. But always it will come back to one thing, who has been here the longest. That is the one thing that settles the argument. In the end the person who can say, my family has been here longer than yours will play that like a trump card. And me, I'm from away. I'll always be from away. And that is a part of small-town America as well, perhaps the best part. I think most of us small town folks would like it to stay that way.