In most places, being a "townie" is considered a bad thing. It usually means that you have a limited world view, and perhaps a less than open mind. But for me, being a townie means being being a part of the community. This is something I took for granted in my home town. While I was a part of my school community, I never got terribly in my larger community.
When I left my hometown, it was to go to graduate school. Again, I was a part of the school community primarily. Because it was a faith based school, we did do some community outreach in the form of ministry, so I was a little more involved, but working full time and studying part time, I did not have too much time left over.
After graduate school, I moved to Pittsburgh. I knew no one, and so I initially got very involved in the community, in the form of volunteer work, but the more people I met, the more I stayed within my comfort zone. I never really felt at home, though there was so much I loved about living in Pittsburgh. I just could not become a "city girl".
When I moved to Kittanning, for the first time in 8 years, I had a sense of being home. We live right in town. Our street has a local cop, a local postmaster, and a county commissioner living on it. We are involved in the community, I serve on a couple of different committees and boards. And I have devoted the majority of this blog to living in a town I love. But it is only recently that I have started feeling like a "townie".
I am finally learning who is who, what the real deal is, what the important issues. I can hold my own in conversations about town and community issues with people born and raised here. I have finally found my own place within the community.
So, if anyone wants to call me a "townie" now, I will take it as a supreme compliment.
