Allow me to reintroduce myself. I am a MRS K—a Mom Raising Southern Kids. Born and raised in the New England area, I’ve lived in the South for almost 2 decades. My husband and I love it here. It’s where we’ve decided to raise our children, and Georgia, you're our home. Here’s what I’ve learned:
1. Time is relative!
As the saying goes, “New Yorkers are in a rush to go nowhere.” The exact opposite is true living in the South. Life is slower paced in the South and that’s okay. As a college freshman, I remember rushing to my first class and a friend from South Carolina stopped me to ask why I was rushing. I answered that I had to get to class. He said, “Whatever we’re trying to get to will be there when we get there so slow down! Relax.” The new patience I developed with this mindset helps to this day.
2. Mooooove! Get out the way!
With that in mind, you cannot drive the way you do at home living in the South. The tailgating, horn honking, zooming through traffic is not only inconsiderate but at times dangerous. Because people are not in a rush when they drive, no amount of beeping, tailgating, or yelling will make a person in front of you go faster. It is better to plan as much as you can for the unpredictability of commuter traffic. Or call ahead to apologize for being late. You may even get a “Bless your heart, drive safe,” as you do exactly that.
3. Cheesesteaks, cheeseburgers, cheese curds, cheese pizza
With the steady stream of people moving to the South in the past few decades, don’t worry, you will find the food that reminds you of home. Restaurants, most times owned by other transplants, feature certain foods when you want a taste of home. From Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks to Fellini’s Pizza where you can get a New York slice, and Midwest chain Freddy’s, you can find reminders of home, when you need to reminisce. If you want to give your southern-born kids a taste of the cuisine you remember from your childhood, it can be done.
4. Rain, Rain, Go Away! Hail the Sunshine! The weather takes some adjusting to, if you did not grow up with tornado sirens, melting concrete and stag beetles. Despite living here for almost 20 years, it seems I learn something new every season, like how to keep cool in the sweltering, summer heat. I’ve learned where the greatest splash pads and how to spend time counting between peals of thunder. This may seem commonplace to those who are born here, like my children, who laughed out loud at the fact that I did not know what a tornado position is, nor had tornado drills in elementary school.
5. Friends are Family
Not being from here does not mean you are without a “framily”—friends who are like family. Casual friendliness is ubiquitous to southern culture. It becomes comforting not to have people rudely walk by and make an effort to avoid eye contact. Being from a different state and meeting other transplants too, my husband and I know the importance of framily.
Mrs. Saleemah Jackson is the author of How Far Is The Nearest Subway?, a novel chronicling five friends’ lives as they navigate being mothers in Atlanta. Loosely based on the author’s life, this fish-out-of-water story explores living in a new city while encountering life’s joys and pains. How Far Is The Nearest Subway? is available on Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com.
