Thrusday Thirteen No. 4

Thirteen Things I Like About Living in a Small Community

There are alot of advantages to living in a smaller community. My wife and I moved to Northwest Arkansas 20 years ago from Dallas. Three years ago we built a new home in a wooded subdivision and I can honestly say that I have no desire to live anywhere else on planet earth. I could write a book about all of the great things associated with this part of the world, but I have chosen to show you thirteen of the reasons I like my life and where I live.

1. Hometown restuarants. There is nothing like a good hometown BBQ restuarant. You can keep Famous Daves, Rib Crib, Smokey Bones, and Shorty Smalls....give me the Whole Hog every time.

2. Football Friday Nights!!! What's not to like about a good highschool fooball game in small town USA? Half of the town shows up for every home game. It is just great. We're the team in black

3. My church. The truth of God's Word is taught and preached here every week. It is a place to refresh the spirit and the soul. I had the privilege of being the chairman of the building committe for this new sanctuary. We've been in it about 5 years now

4. Saturday Farmer's Market on the square. At one time, this town was as close to a real life Mayberry RFD and it could get. The Farmer's Market was brought back to the square about 6 years ago. In the spring and summer, fresh vegetables, jellies, jams, and honey can be had. In the fall, the fare turns more craft oriented.

5. The Grandkids. Our grandchildren live about 7 miles from us. We see them every week in church. We go to the soccer matches, dance recitals, etc. They have sleep-overs at our house. It is just great!!! It is such great fun watching them grow up. I feel very sorry for grand parents who live hundreds of miles from this incredible source of joy. If you only get to see the grandkids a couple of times a year, you are missing one of the true blessings in life.

6. The corner coffee shop. This place has a little more urban feel than the traditional small town coffee shop. You won't necessarily find the local retired farmers in here solving the worlds problems, but you will get a great cup of coffee and a quiet place to relax and enjoy the company of friends or just sit and read a good book.

7. The Nature Trail. This trail is about 2 miles long and is just 10 minutes from our home. There are several great photo opportunities along the way. This particular spot happens to be my favorite. I have spent some time on that bench just thanking God for His marvelous creation and for giving me the privilege of enjoying it.

8. Fishing. There are dozens of lakes, rivers, and streams within an hour of the house. The lakes range in size from 20 acres to over 30,000 acres.

Smallmouth, Largemouth bass, crappie are the targets in the lakes while (both rainbow and brown) and smallmouth bass are the most popular species in the streams. Again, this is mostly about getting outside and enjoying the entire experience.
9. The drive to work. I live 14 miles from the office and the first 4 miles looks like this. There is an expressway about 3 miles in the opposite direction, but I don't get to work any quicker and it is too much like larger cities. I avoid the fast lane whenever possible.

10. Our home. We build this place three years ago and we just love it.

11. Space. This is a view of the area surrounding our new office building. We are only a mile from the center of downtown and this is actually looking a little west of the downtown area. You can't get this view in New York City, Chicago, Dallas, or LA. I've been in all of these cities and I like this view the best.

12. Christmas at our house. My wife is one of Santa's original elves. It is her favorite time of the year and that makes it a favorite time for everyone else. You cannot imagine the boxes of decorations that are in the basement. She puts it all together like a pro and makes everyone's Christmas Special.

13. Playing in the park with the grandkids. It just doesn't get any better than this.