Southern Style.

Sometimes I really love living in the South. For example, I love that my family is completely southern. We're complete with the drawl, lingo, and easy-going "it'll eventually get done" attitude. I especially love the men in my family. They are the Southern Gentlemen. My cousins, are borderline "redneck," but they are complete (perhaps not in diction) with perfect manners and etiquette. They are some of the few men left in the world who have complete respect and admiration for the women in their lives. They still stand up from where they're sitting when a lady enters the room. They still wait to be seated at the table until my grandmother is seated. The best of all is that they take off their hats when they greet and talk to a woman. I was visiting with my cousins the other day and Adam (18) came home with a friend in tow. As they entered the den, both young gentlemen took off their hats to greet me and my cousin. I think it's a direct result from my uncle slapping him on the back of the head and saying "Boy, you take off that hat when you talk to a woman." But he's learned that when you give respect, you get respect. When we visited my grandmother in the hospital, I watched as Adam and my uncle tipped their hats to each of the nurses. It's just nice for me to see. And it makes me hold my family more dear to my heart, because I see things in them that are lost to the rest of the world.

Monday, June 27, 2005 | 7:56 PM | LINK |