You can take the girl out of the small town…

I was deciding what my next entry would be for today on the way to work this morning when this new song came on one of my favorite country station. It’s called “Old Alabama” by Brad Paisley featuring Alabama. Now if any of my Georgia or Tennessee friends are reading this, it plays on the song by Alabama called Mountain Music, which was one of the staple songs of my childhood. If you haven’t known me outside of work or school, I was an avid clogger in my heyday (haha ages 10-16) and that song was played over and over, much like Rocky Top (which most every clogger knows the dance to). I was on an awesome team, Clog’n FX out of Lawrenceville, GA under the direction of the great Scotty Bilz. Bear with me as I am going to make a point!

Now I’m going to give you a short lesson on modern day clogging, whether you want to hear it or not! Modern clogging is fascinating! I always get, oh that’s the dance with wooden shoes. Um, no, that is traditional in Holland and we are in the Southern United States, but thanks for playing! The other misconception is that it is square dancing. Again, no. There are elements that resemble square dancing, but no, I don’t walk in circles, or squares. Clogging is similar to tap, the shoes even look similar. The taps are different because instead of one solid piece of metal, there are two that “jingle” off each other, which are commonly called jingle taps. There are various categories of competition that cover a wide range of styles, from traditional big skirts and heel clicks to the incorporation of elements of hip hop. If you want a taste of the stuff that Clog’n FX and the other awesome clogging teams in the country do, click this link!

I know this seems to be out of left field as compared to my other blogs, but I wanted to explain my background to get to my point. That song that came on the radio thrust me into a wave of nostalgia and longing to do those things that I loved so much again. I turned it up and had a great time (at least as good of a time you can have before 9am) and relived some memories I didn’t even know I had. My point is that I have been living VERY HAPPILY in a metroplex for 6 years now, but there are definitely advantages to having lived in a small town. 

This is my point: I think differing experiences helps you to understand people from that background. I will forever know the perspective of those living in a small town in the south because I have. People who have lived in small towns in the south, I believe will hit a level of understanding with this blog entry more so than those who haven’t because they get where I’m coming from. I will also know the perspective of those living in a large city. In addition, because of my recent traveling adventures, I understand some of the perspectives of various European cultures and especially how that relates to me as an American. Understanding is what I believe makes one truly educated on people. Merely studying them (as I do in psychology) doesn’t really get to that deeper level of understanding. How do you market to these people or attempt to help them in the workplace if you don’t truly understand them? There are ways to get at understanding, but I’ve always believed in the quote “You must have walked the path to give direction.” Differing experiences definitely help with that (whether it be clogging in GA or understanding the complexities of the Dallas social scene). 

So as I am contemplating my big break back into the world of clogging (which is difficult as there aren’t many competitive teams in North Texas, I kept going back to the saying that “You can take the girl out of the small town (shout out to Newnan GA) but you can’t take the small town out of the girl!”