I, like many of my peers nationwide, grew up in a small rural town in the middle of pretty much nothing. The only thing that seems to make Blountsville, AL mildly remarkable to anyone outside the town limits is Spring Valley Beach water park, but even that is a stretch for a lot of people. Even so, there are a few things in common for small towns all across the country, and I'm about to lay some of them down for you. Listen close to learn a few things, or nod along as I describe your little town to a "T."
1. There's little to do, like ever.
One of the perks of living in Smalltown, USA is the plethora of fun activities to do. I wish. There's usually not much to do as far as activities go. You have to travel at least thirty minutes in literally any direction to hit a reasonable town in Blountsville's case, and that's often the scenario for every little town everywhere. Thus, we have to come up with our own entertainment. This leads to points two and three.
2. Most of your "nights out" end up in someone's backyard.
With there being so little to do, my friends and I usually ended up at someone's house every weekend. We saved the travel to places like Cullman and Trussville for those odd occasions where backyard shenanigans just wouldn't cut it. I can't even begin to tell you about the countless nights sitting under the stars beside a bonfire. We didn't have to be doing anything in particular, and most time we never did do anything in particular. We hung out, we told stories, and we played simple games.
3. We created entertainment out of things not meant for entertainment.
Or, we changed the way the entertainment was meant to be enjoyed. I know that we ended up at the Oneonta Walmart a few times here and there, and we hardly did any shopping. We played around in the store like many other tweens and teens did, and we enjoyed it for awhile. Other times, unlikely spots like the Cleveland Chevron served as a hangout spot before moving on to other places (usually someone's backyard).
4. Going to get food meant more than a 10-minute trip.
Whether it was Taco Bell, Jack's, China Wok, or some other relatively cheap and fast option, getting food was never just "getting food". Since I moved to Huntsville, going to get food usually means getting to the restaurant, ordering, and either eating quick and leaving or bringing the food back with us. Back in the Blount County days (yes, Alabama also has a Blount County), going to a restaurant of any kind meant staying there for at least an hour at a time and sometimes two or three. Some of this may have had to do with driving ten minutes to get to any one restaurant, but most times we just wanted to get out and do something.
5. My friends and I bonded more.
In a town (Or set of towns; Blount County is pretty much just a collection of small towns) like mine, it was boring to do anything alone. My friends and I got into everything together, and we were together pretty much all of the time. It's much easier to bond more with a person or a group of people when you are pretty much forced to do things together all of the time. We were super close, and I'm still super close to the ones I get to see today. Granted, it's only like a handful of people, but still.
6. Everyone knows everyone.
It is no exaggeration when you know pretty much everyone in your town. For some people, you end up related to pretty much everyone. For me, it's somewhere in between since I did know lots of folks, but I didn't know everyone. This comes with perks, but there's also a caveat; everyone knows everyone's business. It's hard to keep a secret in a small town, and I know gossip and rumors spread like wildfire. You can imagine how well that goes.
7. Most everyone suffers from wanderlust to a certain degree.
Whether it's about moving away temporarily for school, traveling the globe indefinitely, or getting out for good, most people who live in a small town have a reason for wanting to get away. For me, Huntsville has served that purpose more than adequately, and I feel spoiled about all the things I can do up here as opposed to back home. I don't have time to much "extra" stuff anymore, anyway, but the ability to do more than sit around still lurks in the back of my head. That plays a large role in me probably not settling in Blountsville anytime soon, if ever.
8. You learn to appreciate your roots.
Regardless of how much you want to get away from a small town, you learn to appreciate the little things about your roots. Your roots don't have to be planted there permanently, but they are always influenced by your time there, no matter how short. For example, I have more appreciation for the outdoors and just being able to relax outside doing simple things with my friends and family, and getting the chance to grow up in a small town has played a direct role in that.
I have opinions I wouldn't have from living here, and I've broken molds from being from there that wouldn't have ever been challenged without being there first. It's far from perfect, but there are many places on Earth that are farther. Blountsville wasn't always much, but it was home. I'll appreciate it for that simple fact.
