Me on a hike in Western North Carolina, a part of #Appalachia that formed me into the woman I am today. Photo by Brian
I read a wonderful essay on #GrowingUpAppalachian that has me thinking about the fact that I AM Appalachian. the old rocks and the rich soil are part of my DNA. While I am totally HOME here in Pensacola, Florida, I cannot ignore my Appalachian roots.
Let me first share a quote from the author-- a young woman from Kentucky who grew up in very similar circumstances as I did in Rural Greater Pittsburgh.
Whitney Allen, a native of Eastern Kentucky says this about growing up in some of the world's oldest highlands:
"Culturally speaking, Appalachia is extremely rich. As a community that is poor — monetarily speaking — we have learned to find the wealth in our land and our surroundings. Appalachian culture is marked by strong, pragmatic Christian views, close relationships with family members, and far too often by the belief that those who grow up in the area have backwards beliefs and mentalities. For me, I believe that it has allowed me to appreciate the positive and to grow beyond the negative by being exposed to all different types of individuals throughout my short life. I will take the lessons that I have learned growing up in the mountains through my life and will use them to help educate others on our culture and to promote tolerance in our community for cultures different from our own."**
Let me address the stereotypes I run up against when folks discover my Appalachian roots.
While poverty exists-- I witnesses some of this in my own rural public-school experience-- but not all Appalachians grow up in shacks in the " hollers" with no running water. Poverty is a problem in these United States that transcends regions. Yet due in part to the works of JD Vance { Ew, don't get me started on what I think of him!} the trope surrounding my home region is that of the " dirt-poor hillbilly"
For instance, my brother and I grew up in a comfortable, middle-class, two-parent home. Dad is an Army veteran with some college education who successfully managed a retail store until economics forced the store to close. Mom is a graduate of The Pennsylvania State University {GO NITTANY LIONS!} My brother and I went to poorly funded public schools, and we both are adults that are always learning.
Growing up, most of our peers went to church on Sunday. However, growing up in an interfaith home {Dad was raised Irish-Catholic and Mom Jewish} church was not part of our childhood. Sometimes this made me feel awkward, but as an adult I am grateful that my interfaith upbringing {and eventual baptism into Christianity at the age of 20} gives me a unique perspective on religion in general and my own Christian walk in particular.
Like nearly every child who grew up in Appalachia: I loved playing freely in the woods around our neighborhood. Our neighborhood had groups of children who --in the good weather months--were outside from morning until dusk. I'm still in contact with most of these " kids" now. Some still live where I grew up, others-- like myself-- moved far away. yet the bond of an incredible safe ' free-range' childhood unites us.
My Dad is one of six children, and I remember Sunday suppers at my paternal grandparents' house. Since our family unit lived the farthest away, we would only drive to Sunday Supper once monthly. Additionally, in the summer months our aunts and uncles would spoil us with attention. I was nearly ten years old before the first of the McCarren cousins came along and I was thrilled to finally have a cousin. My teen years were spent with other cousins arriving. It was-- and still is-- a joy to be the senior member of that generation of this branch of the McCarren family tree.
To be honest, living in Florida means that I missed really having that quality time with my cousins. But that solid sense of family allows for me to build my own clan here.
I grew up just as the steel and coal industry of Greater Pittsburgh was drawing to an end. While some of Greater Pittsburgh Appalachia has grown beyond steel and coal, other communities suffer from lack of well-paying jobs. To a certain extent the discovery of natural gas in the seams of those old ridges has given the area an economic boost.
Pittsburgh's entrance into the medical and medical research fields have attracted talent to the area. Yet each time I return I sense deep within my soul that my part of Appalachia struggles economically. The population of the small towns near where I grew up have declined in the nearly 23 years since I've left.
In spite of all the struggles, my Appalachian childhood was wonderful. The people I know and love who live there are hardworking, kind, community-oriented people.
I am-- an always will be- a child of Appalachia.
** Allen, Whitney What Its Really Like to Grow Up Appalachian Thought Catalog June 19 2015
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