Fort Payne, Alabama, used to be the place I couldn’t wait to get out of. At an early age, I was certain that I was a big city girl stuck in a small town girl’s body. I traveled as much as I could, and at the early age of 14, I got my passport to go “across the pond,” as my dad liked to call it. I marveled at the chaos and speediness of the city life, where no one knew you and you could stop for a cappuccino at any block you wanted. I loved meeting people on the subway, reading Faulkner in the park, and spending every dollar I had to see a Broadway show. I felt free. I knew as soon as I graduated college that I would pack up my life and fly away to this fairy-tale place that I loved so much. But God had different plans. I stayed in Fort Payne after college, got a job, and fell in love. I got married this past September and three months later, my husband and I headed North—Ohio to be exact. I’m over 500 miles away from Fort Payne, something I’d looked forward to for a long time. I didn’t realize how much I would miss the Sock Capital of the World, as it was once was called. I miss the beauty, the warmth, the southern hospitality, even the Wal-mart. I miss the mountains and its trails, the sweetness of snow cones, high school football, and the spontaneous back yard BBQs. I’m writing this today to the wonderful community that is the city of Fort Payne, which I no longer take for granted. If you have felt what I once did, imagining selling a right lung to be able to leave the South, just think of all the wonderful things that make Fort Payne so unique. I promise you will miss it as I do. As the wonderful Randy Owen put it, “My home’s in Alabama,” and I hope that yours will stay that way, too.
