http://tara.aukerman.org/wordpress/2008/04/visiting/ here I am Sun, 15 Aug 2010 03:21:48 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 http://tara.aukerman.org/wordpress/2008/04/visiting/comment-page-1/#comment-10535 Mom A. Sun, 20 Apr 2008 02:44:46 +0000 http://tara.elmadera.com/wordpress/?p=639#comment-10535 Hmmm...I had several thoughts while I was reading this post. One is that I grew up in a small town and thought I'd never enjoy going back home, but now I do. There is comfort in the folks from long ago who still remember and care - I mean neighbors and church friends, not school friends. (I didn't really have any of those, just acquaintances.) It was an amazing comfort to discover, when my father died, that word spread quickly and people everywhere were expressing their sympathy to us. What a blessing! Second, I believe big cities can suck people in, too, just in a different way. Sucked in by finding "safety" in relative anonymity, etc. Or trapped by circumstance. Personally, I feel sucked in/trapped by Anderson and would like to be elsewhere, but this is where God has placed us, so I manage the best I can to serve the Kingdom here. Third, I don't think everyone who is still in their home town is necessarily "sucked in." My sister still lives back home. It's just where she & her husband found work after college. They have forged a new and productive life there. I wouldn't dare say she hasn't "moved on," because she has. Just not physically. Fourth observation: I think small-town people tend to be more "real" (read: "genuine") than city people. I appreciate that. The best years of my life so far were in small-town Hurricane, WV. I still miss it. Now, would I ever be happy moving back to Cambridge? I don't really think so. But could I move to another small town somewhere near there or here or WV? You bet! Hmmm…I had several thoughts while I was reading this post. One is that I grew up in a small town and thought I’d never enjoy going back home, but now I do. There is comfort in the folks from long ago who still remember and care – I mean neighbors and church friends, not school friends. (I didn’t really have any of those, just acquaintances.) It was an amazing comfort to discover, when my father died, that word spread quickly and people everywhere were expressing their sympathy to us. What a blessing!
Second, I believe big cities can suck people in, too, just in a different way. Sucked in by finding “safety” in relative anonymity, etc. Or trapped by circumstance. Personally, I feel sucked in/trapped by Anderson and would like to be elsewhere, but this is where God has placed us, so I manage the best I can to serve the Kingdom here.
Third, I don’t think everyone who is still in their home town is necessarily “sucked in.” My sister still lives back home. It’s just where she & her husband found work after college. They have forged a new and productive life there. I wouldn’t dare say she hasn’t “moved on,” because she has. Just not physically.
Fourth observation: I think small-town people tend to be more “real” (read: “genuine”) than city people. I appreciate that. The best years of my life so far were in small-town Hurricane, WV. I still miss it.
Now, would I ever be happy moving back to Cambridge? I don’t really think so. But could I move to another small town somewhere near there or here or WV? You bet!

]]> http://tara.aukerman.org/wordpress/2008/04/visiting/comment-page-1/#comment-10534 sarah g Fri, 18 Apr 2008 13:08:18 +0000 http://tara.elmadera.com/wordpress/?p=639#comment-10534 loved seeing you : ) it was great. and, i feel the same way about high school... ironic since i'm dating a guy from our high school : ) loved seeing you : ) it was great. and, i feel the same way about high school… ironic since i’m dating a guy from our high school : )

]]> http://tara.aukerman.org/wordpress/2008/04/visiting/comment-page-1/#comment-10532 Tom Thu, 17 Apr 2008 20:34:56 +0000 http://tara.elmadera.com/wordpress/?p=639#comment-10532 I came from a small town too. Couldn't agree more. There are two types of "small towners" - those that can't imagine leaving and those that can't wait. I was definitely the latter. I came from a small town too. Couldn’t agree more. There are two types of “small towners” – those that can’t imagine leaving and those that can’t wait. I was definitely the latter.

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