A Taste of Maine

My Dad recently sent me an email.

He must have known that I needed a little taste of "home".

You see -- I spent the first 21, almost 22, years of my life in Central Maine. Born and raised small town girl. Accent and all, although if you ask people from Maine ... we don't have accents. Everyone else does.

But I digress.

Less than a week after graduating college in 2008, M. and I ran off to the courthouse and eloped. And within a month, Maine was no longer "home", as my home was wherever the military sent us. Now that we are retired and back in the civilian world, we are still in M.'s home-state, North Carolina.

North Carolina is nice, but every now and then, I get that twinge of homesickness. I don't miss the freezing cold temperatures. I don't miss shoveling a driveway full of snow. Or the crazy mosquitoes in the summer. I don't miss having to drive almost two hours to get to a decent shopping mall, or dreaming about the good food from the nicer chain restaurants you see on tv commercials, because they just aren't available there.

But I do miss the people. Outsiders often tell me they think Mainers are rude and arrogant people. But they just don't know us! They see Bostonians and the "big city folk" and lump us all together. The people where I am from are so humble and simple. Easy going. Hard working. Neighborly. It may not be the same as that "southern hospitality" [which, even in the south I don't always see!] but to me, its what defines home.

The people. And that's what I find myself missing. Family ... friends ... the old lady across the street who was always on her front step, waving to say hello. The mailman, busy delivering a bag full of letters -- but never too busy to stop and see how you are doing. The Police Officers, Firemen, road crews, bankers, doctors, teachers, neighbors and more. All there with a smile and a wave, a kind and welcoming "hi-ya" or "How are yah?".

Yeah -- I really miss that. [And that accent ... but don't tell them I said they have one!!]

So I leave you with this video clip from the email. It's an older couple trying to get their lines right for a local restaurant's commercial. It's cute -- and that touch of home that I needed.

And in case you are wondering, or ever in the area, the restaurant is delicious, home-style food. Dysart's, pronounced "Dy-saht's", everyone!!