When I visit friends and family in New York City, I am
repeatedly asked “Why do you live in such a narrow-minded, racist, right-wing,
etc. etc. place?” I know all the reasons that I do live here, but New
Yorkers (and I mean this is the most loving way) are frequently a bit arrogant
and can I say, narrow-minded? They believe they live in the most
wonderful, exciting, fun-filled city in the world! They can’t imagine
living anywhere else because many of them have not lived anywhere else. Even
when they’re hit by snowstorms, hurricanes, subway and garbage strikes, they
hold fast to that belief. They’re definitely not interested in hearing
the up side of living in South Georgia—and there is an upside. While I
detest the extreme heat and the insects, I like the lack of serious weather
problems and the opportunity for low-cost country living. I also like
knowing a lot of people, even if I don’t love all of them (and vice-verse).
The past week, for me, has been proof of the good this
community can be capable of. First, after weeks of blood, sweat, tears,
panic attacks and some r-rated language, we completed the run of “Purlie Victorious”
which was amazingly well attended and enjoyed by all. This is a play
about race and hate in all its southern glory and yet so many people seemed
thrilled to watch it. Granted, the audience was primarily black—but the
cast was evenly divided, and there were a fair number of us white folks present
as well. In addition, I had wonderful support from many segments of the
community, excellent publicity and it ended up in the black.
The second thing was not a positive by any means. We
unexpectedly lost the Director of the Okefenokee Heritage Center where the play
was staged. Steve Bean left us much too soon; I have no doubt he had a
lot more to give. Most people are aware that Steve was in a long-term
relationship that is frequently frowned upon within our community, yet so many
rallied around his partner with sincere love and sympathy. Both were
clearly loved and accepted by our community. To me, it is more meaningful
for people to show genuine love and caring rather than “political correctness”.
Really, I doubt that I could have experienced either of
these happenings had I been living in New York City. Like many I would
travel from my home cocoon to my work cocoon and maybe a few other assorted
places filled with random strangers. Maybe I could have participated in
some little piece of theater somewhere, and surely after a while I would have
had a few friends. I do doubt that I could have been the prime mover of a
production like this one which succeeded against all odds and with a cast of
largely inexperienced actors. The set was built from scratch by some
folks who had never done anything like this before either.
I like the fact that I now have more connections than before
and get to see a lot of the same people in different contexts. I have
connections to my pedicurist, my hairdresser, restaurant owners, newspaper
people, city and county commissioners, lawyers and writers. I frequently
find myself channeling Sally Fields and saying “You like me, you really like
me!” I dare to think that some of them actually do!
