Whistling Dixie

January and February were the most homesick months that I've had here in Alabama. And I've struggled to put my finger on exactly why that is. The cockroaches are a fading memory. We have a beautiful new home. I've even met a few people I would consider friends. Yet, I've spent the past two months racking up phone bills and feeling like a little piece of my heart was missing.

It could've been the weather. Or maybe it's because my mom was here in December. But most likely, it's because the euphoria of living in Eufaula has been replaced by the reality of living here. And the realization that we're not going home again. We're not just passing through; we live here. We have Alabama driver's licenses and Alabama tags on our cars. When we return to California for a visit, we will inevitably be introduced as "friends from Alabama," a label I'm not yet fully comfortable with.

Tornadoes and NASCAR obsession aside, Alabama is not altogether a bad place to live. People welcome you into their community and treat you like family. We've received more covered dishes and baby gifts than we know what to do with. Plus, there is a lack of pretense with most people that I find refreshing; people generally say what they mean and mean what they say. There's a lot to appreciate about this place and I'm really trying to open my heart and mind to the potential of being here a while. But I have to let go of a few things first.

I never ever considered my life in California to be glamorous in the least, but as I pull my car into the parking lot of Young's Bait and Tackle for my drink every morning on the way to school, I realize that it was a pretty cushy existence. What it really comes down to for me is learning to appreciate wherever I am, because it's likely I'll miss it when I'm no longer there. Someday, in the distant future, when I'm once again living in the big city, I'm sure I'll mourn the Bait and Tackle shop on Lakeside Drive that would order cases of Power Bars just for me; I'll shed a few tears over Howell's Paint Store that would meet me outside at my car with my order and still operates on a customer tab. And undoubtedly, the piece of my heart that is missing right now will be filled in with lots of new friends- new people to love. Maybe Alabama isn't so bad after all.