Small Town

I was driving to work this morning and came to the stop sign behind an old pick up truck. The bumper sticker in the window of the cab said "My wife says I'm not fun anymore, well, DUH, we're MARRIED now."

I couldn't design a more idiotic bumper sticker if I tried.

Not that I'm a great fan of bumper stickers anyway. I've never had one on my own vehicle. I don't even like the dealer logo being on my car.

Well I wrote all the above days ago and it didn't go anywhere so I'm picking up with my thoughts on a conversation I overheard at work this morning. I come from a pretty rural setting. I work in a small town, the county seat, population 693. I live fifteen minutes up the road in another small town, population 2262. This can be a little misleading because of course everyone is a bit spread out and they aren't included within the city limits. But you get the idea. Small Town. It comes with all the stereotypes you can imagine. Everyone knows everyone and gossip spreads like wildfire. Very conservative thinking, everyone goes to the same churches, so there isn't a lot of diverse opinions on social and political issues.

This can be difficult for people, like me, who have a different background or wander in from somewhere bigger. I don't raise farm animals to show at the County Fair (this is another topic all in itself, the County Fair is Big, HUGE), I don't go to the Baptist church, I don't work at the county courthouse nor the school district. Oh, and let's not forget my biggest transgression: I'm a Democrat.

But here's a tip for those of you who find your way into a small town and don't feel quite like you belong. Everyone has something to offer. Don't look down your nose at the differences, search out the similarities, learn something new, odds are, you'll end up learning something new about yourself.