Small Town Life

As a product of the metropolitan NYC area, I never would have guessed that I would end up in rural Pennsylvania. Next year I will start my 40th year here.

I am so lucky! This place makes a complicated life easier.  Need some milk for breakfast?  No problem. In a few minutes this task is accomplished, only 2 traffic lights and parking spaces freely available. Just about everything is within 15 minutes.  If I have to go to the other side of town, I think twice. It just seems like such a long trip.  Of course shopping can be limited, but nothing that Amazon Prime or Bloomingdales.com can’t solve.  The only thing we are missing is excellent specialized health care.

The biggest bonus I have is my friends. I just took a walk and halfway around my circuit I saw my friend Margie sitting outside. I ended up sitting on her patio and spending a half hour with her and her spectacular daughter Morgan. This is what people did in the olden days, sit and visit. No smartphones in sight, just lazy conversation on a perfect summer day. Morgan just returned from a six week stint volunteering at a school in a very disadvantaged area in Nicaragua. Roaches, insects, mosquitoes were routine visitors, but she just got on with it.  She is a star.

Morgan and her two sisters, Emily and Anna, used to walk up to the house and visit with Nick. He loved it when they knocked at the door. They would bring their dog or walk Omega (Nick’s guide dog) and always took loads of time to be with Nick.

Neighbors are also treasured. On our block, dinners together are common, as is sharing produce from the garden (thank you in advance, Amos) or walking each other’s dogs.

It’s also nice to have friends of all ages. I still treasure the comment of a friend’s son, who referred to me as “Lynn.”  She said to him, “Do you mean Mrs. Petnick” and he replied, “No, she’s my friend, Lynn!”

Of course being in a small town has some disadvantages for my son and his family. How many times have my son and grandsons been asked if they are related to Nick? They will never be able to get away with anything!

There is always a friend to help me drop off my car at the mechanic, or to pick me up at the airport.  And several make it a point to invite me to dinner. That is always a treat.

When Nick got sick, it surprised and shocked (and sickened) me that several of the people I had though were good friends, dropped us like a hot potato. I later learned that this is not an uncommon experience. The silver lining was the friends who really stepped up.  I tear up when I think of their goodness.

So I raise my glass to small town life and the friends who enrich it.