Life in East Texas

I love to sit at my desk and look out into the backyard. It reminds me of a state park. Huge trees, lots of squirrels and birds and even a little ditch across the back where water flows through when we’ve had heavy rain. I try very hard to keep my squirrel feeder and bird feeder full because I do enjoy watching the little creatures. So does my Golden Retriever, for that matter, but I think our interests may not be quite the same.

I feel like I am on an extended vacation in someone else’s home. We’ve been here a little over a year now and I guess this house is finally starting to feel like our home. My husband has even wanted to help decorate the house. How scary is that??? Very, actually, as our tastes aren’t very much alike. Well, maybe that’s not totally true. We didn’t use to like the same things at all, but more and more we find ourselves liking the same pictures, paint color etc. I like to think his taste is improving. I am glad that’s he taking an interest in making the house look nice. It would be good, though, if he would work on his office, hobby room, and garage!

I love our house, I love our neighbors and I love our church. I don’t know if it’s just this neighborhood (and my guess is that it is not), but neighbors actually talk to each other! They tell you to let them know if you need something – and they mean it! If I tell my next door neighbor that I am going to fix tater tot casserole for dinner, but I have to go get tater tots, I can guarantee you that is she has them on hand, she will be here with a bag of tater tots to save me a trip to the store! Now, I have lived in another state my whole life until we moved here and it’s been a long time since I’ve had neighbors like that. Don’t get me wrong – there are an awful lot of good people back in that other state. But it’s different here. Different in a way that feeds my soul, makes me a better person and makes me feel loved by people who don’t even know me well. And I love them back, too, and I don’t know them well, either. If and when we move back to that other state, I will be a better person and a better neighbor for having lived here.

There are good people here in East Texas. The local banks advertise on TV and mention God and say “Merry Christmas”, not Happy Holidays. If you have offices to visit, you’d better not plan on getting your errands done in a hurry. People here like to take their time and they want to visit a little. I have learned to appreciate the slower pace and when I leave those places, I feel like the person I was doing business with was interested in me.
Yep, there are some good people here. If you want to give your ego a little boost, just come on down and visit with some folks here. But a word of caution! You will not find most of these good people at Wal-Mart. Now, I haven’t actually seen it, but I am sure that right outside the perimeters of the parking lot, there is a hook where you hang your manners before entering the parking lot and you can pick them up again when you come back out. It’s like a free-for-all there! You’re in danger whether you are driving in the lot or walking to or from the store in the lot. And it doesn’t get any better inside, folks. People will come barreling out of the aisles into a main row without looking to see if anyone is coming or not. And while they are running you down, they will look at you with a look that clearly says “How dare you be in my way?!”, like you are standing there just for the mere purpose of being in their way. And there is no age limit on this type of behavior, either. I’ve seen teenagers do it, I’ve seen middle aged people do it and I’ve seen old people do it. Let me tell ya, you’d better be on the lookout for those little old ladies. They may look sweet & fragile, but don’t you fall for that! And getting up and down those inner aisles is another story in itself. Some people down here make going to Wal-Mart a family affair. They bring the kids, their brothers & sisters and grandma & grandpa along. And the whole darn family stands around the cart blocking the aisle you are trying to get down. And do you think they are going to move out of your way? Nooooo siree – you’re just going to have to wait! I try really hard to do my Wal-Mart shopping during the week fairly early in the morning. There’s less people there then so it’s a little safer.

Aside from the Wal-Mart thing, East Texas is a great place to live. We’ve got beautiful pine trees, beautiful lakes and lots of sunshine. I thank God for letting us experience this even for a little while.