Just a small town girl

:Grew up in a small town And when the rain would fall down I just stared out my window Dreaming of a could-be And if I'd end up happy:

Last Friday night a classmate and I got into a discussion. He is from Michigan as well and is familiar with where I grew up. He made a comment about my shoes and how they "didn't look like Northern Michigan shoes" (and there aren't--very cute heels!). I replied that there is a lot about me that isn't "Nothern Michigan." Kidding ensued but soon the conversation took a serious turn. He (somewhat jokingly) accused me of "trying to deny where I was from." I was, of course, offended! I have Michigan pride! He teased me about being more of a private school girl. He gave me a quiz regarding some of the snobby defnitions of our discipline. I passed and he commented that I am a rarity for my geographic location. I agreed and we moved on.

The conversation stayed with me, however. Throughout the conversation it seemed I had to do two things simultaneously (a) prove that I had Northern Michigan pride and (b) that I was somehow above it as well. It is a struggle thatI have had througout my country-living life. While I appreciated where I grew up, I was constantly trying to set myself apart. I defined myself by what I wasn't. I wasn't the type of girl that was going to get married right out of high school, have a lot of kids, and not go to college. I valued education. I questioned religion. I voted democrat. By McBain's standards I was a regular ole' freak. I rarely go back home. I have very few friends from high school. So, was my classmate right? Do I try to forget where I am from? I think this used to be the case. But now--I think back on my childhood with really positive feelings. I learned a lot in McBain. I did learn a lot about what I didn't want for life--but I also learned a lot about hard work, dedication, loyalty. This is a town that farms for a living, where people are members of a church their whole lives and most marry their high school sweethearts. Sure--they didn't teach me about ontology or rhetorical criticism but they did make me into this person. Despite my weirdness, not a week goes by that people at church don't ask my mom about how I'm doing down in the south. Or make a comment about how great it is that a McBain girl is getting her schooling (they don't really know the PhD thing) at such a well-known school (sure they only know it b/c of football).

Of course, not a day goes by that I don't thank god for my parents. They instilled a sense of independence, strength and openmindedness in me. I could have grown up in the big city and not had parents like mine--I would have been just as freakish...only in a really bad way. Yeah, I may have never been or ever will be a "small town" girl but I'm glad I grew up in one.