Adjusting to Alabama...

I've been in Alabama for just over four months...it is interesting what has changed from our last time living here... and what has not.

The south is still the south:
I noticed it when I stopped for lunch is Lexington, KY in August as I was moving to Alabama.  I'm back in the land where outward appearance is important to women.  At the Chick-fil-a every woman I saw had perfectly styled hair, was wearing make-up(which included lipstick--something I only wear on a special occasion) and was dressed fashionably.  Since it was a Saturday, (my make-up free day), and I was dressed for comfort.  It really stood out to me.

People speak politely and are genuinely friendly.  "yes ma'am" and "thank you sir". Cashiers and waitresses who look you in the eye and engage in actual conversations with you. After living in a college town filled with self-absorbed college students who rarely, if ever, say "excuse me" as they shove themselves past you in a crowded store aisle, hold conversations with other employees while checking you out at the grocery store, or are just monosyllabic with their interaction with you, it is a very noticeable difference.

The weather:  Still horribly hot and humid in the summer, torrential downpours with tornado warnings, and using the a/c in December.

We chose to live in Prattville again.  I know my way around.  The drive to the base is familiar as is the base itself. We chose to go back to the church we attended when we were here before.

What 10 years away does change...
There are more of things: more houses, more stores, more traffic, more stuff that we own.

There are less of things: only two people living in our house most of the time; less connections because we don't have the kids to automatically plug us in to activities such as soccer, Awana, home school co-ops, and play dates.  No "optionally mandatory" military social events to attend.

Me:  Thanks to being a follower of Jesus, I keep growing and changing. The passage of time means that my situation is totally different than last time we were here. We are not moving upward in Alex's career, we are planning to retire after this assignment.  It's not our first time in the south, so the initial excitement of moving to a new place is not present....and in the last two years we've found the place we would like to call home...it is not Alabama.