Making Adjustments

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Well, I must say, Beckville is quite a change from some of the other places we've lived since we've been married..and there's been quite a few to compare it to! Running to the store to grab milk, bread, or other last minute essentials has become pretty much nonexistant! Every item has to make "the list" and picked up on our weekend trip to Longview or risk another week of shelf warming. Unless, of course, we make the middle of the week trip to Tatum, just about 8 miles up the road where we endure sky-high prices at the only mom and pop grocery store in town. But the friendliness and small town feeling make the trip, and money, worth while.
Another big adjustment comes in the form of mail, or should I say, doesn't come! Living "in-town" (if you will) makes us the lucky few that get to have a PO Box and a daily bike trip to the 20 X 20 post office where blue lollipops are given out just as generously as the smiles. Some days, if the weather isn't too brutally hot, Grace gets a free wagon ride and I put in a few minutes of exercise. The walk is quiet with an occassional car or dog passing by. We pass the highschool and talk about "daddy's school" and bump our way across the railroad tracks that still have the original wooden white 'Beckville' sign standing along side them. We arrive and are greeted with oohs and ahhs of how beautiful Grace is....my heart swells with pride.
The post office isn't the only place bustling in the mid morning. Poppy's gas station and grill sits proudly on the corner of the fourway stop. I've heard they have great burgers, if you can find a place to park! It seems to be the only place in town that looks new on the outside and somewhat new on the inside. It stays pretty busy with boater's filling up their tanks on the weekends and school kids stopping in to get a soft drink.
That's about all there is in the big city of Beckville. It's not a wealthy town, but you can see the wealth of love and pride across all the hardworking faces. I like it that way. It's how I grew up and it's how my children will. It's peaceful and safe, but most of all, it feels like home.