Small Towns

I've been having my share of 'small town' moments lately. You know, the kinds of things that only happen in a small town. Like yesterday, I brought my grass clippings to the dump and as I was sweeping out my pickup bed a guy that goes to my church came over with his gas-powered blower and blew it clean for me. Just tonight the neighbor lady offered up a whole bunch of moving boxes while I was over admiring her new landscaping and last night a couple in our church offered up their humongous garage for storage if we need it.

In Sioux Center, it's pretty hard to go the grocery store and not see someone you know. In fact, it's pretty hard to go anywhere and not see someone you know. When we first moved here Jessica found that very hard to deal with (see came from the city). I was used to it, so it was no big deal. But every so often, I wish that I could go out and not be known. Be anonymous while I'm getting bread and milk (or beer).

When we move to Grand Rapids those small town moments will go away (or at least diminish) and we'll have to get used to a new normal. For example, I can't remember the last time I went to bank and actually had a deposit or withdrawal slip. I've never once been asked to show my ID when I go to the teller window -- they all know me! If I tried that in the city, I'd get laughed right out of the lobby. That's just one of the many things I'm sure we'll miss about small town living.

But I hope we'll still get to know our neighbors and develop the kinds of relationships that we've developed here. It just takes a little time and a little trust and those are two things we could all use a little more of.