Small town manners are world class
Many people find fault with small-town living and there are times when I would agree.
It’s not always convenient to drive 30 minutes to visit the mall or to eat somewhere really nice. It’s not always convenient when you’re running late and you get stuck behind a tractor going down the road.
It’s not always convenient when everybody knows everybody so when you get a bad haircut, get a speeding ticket or commit a terrible fashion faux pas, the whole town knows about it.
But small-town living also has its perks. While everybody knowing everybody can be annoying at times, it’s nice to walk into the grocery store and see a handful of people you either work with, go to church with, or went to school with. It’s nice to have low violent crime rates and know your family is safe.
It’s nice to have good schools where your children can receive a good education from people that you are on a first-name basis with. And some of the small-town traditions and customs are nice, too.
This week, my husband and I had a very good friend whose mother passed away. After her funeral was over and we were all driving through town to the cemetery, I noticed people stopping as the funeral procession drove by.
People who had a green light stopped in the road and waited for us to pass them before they continued on their way. People who didn’t have much room pulled their cars off the side of the road and nodded in sympathy, and I just thought, “You know, I bet people don’t see a lot of this in New York.”
Courtesies like these are standard lessons in the South and in small towns in particular. I’ve always known that it was polite to pull over and stop for a funeral procession out of respect for the family and friends who had just lost someone they loved.
I’ve always known that when someone was sick, you took them a meal. I’ve always known that when someone gave you a gift, no matter how small, you sent them a thank you card.
Simple little things like these may not seem important in the grand scheme of things, but each kind or respectful gesture means something to the person you’ve done it for.
I may not always like everything about living in a small town, but I will always enjoy the kindness and courteousness small-town people seem to have for one another.
