my small town, a package in the mail + mama

I don't think I've laughed this hard in a while.

out loud and by myself.

My mama sent me a package filled with six of our hometown newspapers so I could catch-up with the goings on in Small Town, Georgia; finding sweet old folks that I've known my whole life have died, seeing which classmates have been arrested, reading the latest church news and other important "above" the fold news.

You know, hot topics like: the rodeo clown that was the highlight of the rodeo weekend at the Ag Center, the sheriff's department Easter egg hunt, beloved UGA Football Coach Vince Dooley's book signing two counties away and the landmark(!) trip the senior center took three hours north to Helen, GA. Oh, wait and let's not leave out that the high school {only one in the whole county, remember?} star student and star teacher were featured on the front page 3 weeks straight...same story, same picture.  Must have been a slow couple weeks and a lonely space.

When I was in college my mama sent me the most amazing packages {nearly weekly} filled with silly goodies from the dollar store or a funny card with a $20 bill and always the newest county newspapers.  

I haven't gotten a package like this in a while, so its funny and thoughtful in its own right... but she took it to the next level when she made her personal commentary via yellow post-it notes throughout each issue.  
And she is funny. Really funny.

 

So, you may be thinking, six newspapers is a lot to catch up on, right!?

...not so much. It took 8 minutes, flat.

We have two publications that come out once a week.

the times-journal on Tuesday and news & banner on Wednesday

and they are four full pages, max.

Front and back with an insert that is filled with legals.

Remember there are only 10,000 people in our entire county. rural is an understatement.

This is the best of Small Town USA, y'all. {cue song!}

The "newsworthy" articles are a hoot, you can imagine the quality of the writing

and aside from the odd choice of photos, I'd put money on the fact that most were captured on a cell phone or disposable camera.

But, I tell ya what...there is real beauty in the bad grammar, the questionable word choice and the rambling; these folks genuinely contribute and truly care about the going-ons, {the gossip!} and each other.  There was a great tribute to a retired schoolteacher and another to a beloved man who wasn't wealthy or notorious, just a good old country gentleman everybody knew as the "tow truck man".  There's a piece about the biggest wild turkey ever killed in the county, the money tree that a pastor and his wife received from their congregation and a full reflection on the successful history of Indian corn grown in the region.
Journalism jewels, I tell ya.

However, the most shocking news is that my Aunt Becky was not in one single issue. And this is rare. Her claim to fame, for oh, the past 10 years is that she has her picture in the newspaper nearly every.single.week. NO LIE. Whether it be a Daughters of the Confederacy Luncheon, a Hysterical Historical Society Meeting, her feature of another historic dilapidated barn, our family celebration on Veterans' Day or a Daughters of the Revolution reunion...her picture makes it. We tease her. And it embarrasses her. But it's on the verge of delightfully ridiculous. I've got to get to the bottom of where she's been in hiding.  Stay tuned.

I have no real reason to keep these newspapers, but I'm not sure I can get rid of them yet.  I love seeing my mama's handwriting and some of her comments still have me laughing to tears. And even this trivial collection of mediocre black & white is a good and simple reminder that those folks, are my folks; they brought me on and keep on caring about their own.
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Happy Mother's Day Madre! Once you read this you'll have already learned of mine and Pallie's sneaky surprise this mother's day morning...gotcha! Love you more n' my luggage.