I Can Breathe In A Small Town

(Please play the Youtube video of John Mellencamp’s “Small Town” on the right while reading this.)

I may not have been born in a small town, but you can bet your bottom dollar I have loved living in one all these years.

I’ve been a New Hampshirite ever since I was a young lad. From a time when I worried about nothing more than what flavor Fruit Roll Up I would have for lunch each day, and what time the best cartoons were on.

There is something special about living in one of these small New Hampshire communities, especially when it comes to the unique local events and activities that are held each year. My best childhood memories consist of going up to bat at the Brookline Old Home Days, picking apples at the local farm and having my parents take me to fun fall events like the Milford Pumpkin Festival.

The bigger towns and cities have their giant events and star-studded galas throughout the year, but nothing beats a sunny fall day surrounded by nature with friends and family you have known for years and will love forever. I’ll take family apple picking over the red carpet at the Oscars any day.

In college I dreamed about going to the big city for all of the fun and excitement that awaited me there. For a time, I looked forward to living in a place brimming with culture and new excitements each day.

I shouldn’t have looked so far away.

Since graduation I have been lucky enough to stay in New Hampshire and I’ve discovered that there is enough excitement right here, where I’d been raised. I’ve grown to appreciate the fact that true happiness is achieved through the connections I make, not what I have access to. Appreciating the smaller things in life, and the people they come with, has given me access to a whole spectrum of experiences that may have been neglected as I entered adulthood.

Sure, most of our community events may not meet the same scale as larger places in the country, but I can go to most any of them and see a familiar face or an old friend just waiting for a renewed greeting. The best part about belonging to a New Hampshire community is that you truly become A PART of the community, one of its own.

In an article I wrote on the Milford Pumpkin Festival, I was amazed to be told that many of those who went to the first Milford Pumpkin Festival as children were now taking their own kids this year. That is a special feeling that can only come from a tight-knit community that values tradition and the people they serve.

Some may lament that the world has become disconnected with the onslaught of technology and social media, but here in New Hampshire we still maintain the shared connection that can only come from growing up in one of its many bite-sized communities. 

Seeing events like the Milford Pumpkin Festival grow to the big occasion it is now is a delight and, no matter how large it gets, I know it will always retain that small town charm. It is joined by thousands of smaller gatherings that keep us connected and give a new generation of children precious memories. 

I hope to bring my children to a Granite State event one day and tell them how much fun I had when I was their age. Of course, they will probably be too busy downloading Paranormal Activity 11 on their iPhone 8 while they fly around on their hover boots...