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The Progress
Editorial
March 18,2021
From the Staff
The energy of spring
“The day the Lord created hope was
probably the same day He created
spring,” said the British moral philoso
pher Sir Bernard Williams.
We couldn’t agree more.
The world wakes up in springtime.
This Saturday, March 20th, will mark the
official beginning of spring. To say that
the past year has been long and gray -
words usually set aside for the winter but
in this case can apply to the entire last
year - would be appropriate. Winter, and
hopefully the COVID pandemic, is com
ing to a close. Cherry trees and jonquils
are blooming and thoughts turn to clear
ing out the gutters, starting a garden and
perhaps even weeding our closets.
Spring and hope are intertwined in our
minds.
Spring ushers in a season of temperate
weather, extra hours of daylight and
flowers in bloom. Sunlight streaming in
through the windows will surely brighten
our moods, and we can enjoy some fresh
air by opening up our windows (consid
erate of the pollen, of course).
Spring cleaning, a rite of passage this
time of year, can absolutely transform
our living spaces. We don’t all have to be
decluttering guru Marie Kondo to know
that a little spring time decluttering can
give us a fresh start.
Spring may officially hit this Saturday
but with a few days already in the 70s
many of us already have spring fever. It’s
the time of year when everything in na
ture is changing and promising new life
and new hope. And man do we need it
this year after sheltering away for a year
amid the pandemic.
People seemed unusually happy at the
Shamrock Stroll last Saturday. Back out
among fellow community members does
a body good.
So this year - perhaps more than oth
ers - take advantage of the outdoors. Get
outside and do something. Anything.
After the long, dark, winter months,
spring is literally a breath of fresh air.
The days are getting longer, the nights
shorter, it’s feeling warmer and nature re
sponds to these changes in a big way. So
get outside and get rewarded with dis
plays of jonquils, lenten roses, and cherry
trees that are blooming and birds that are
singing. Carolina chickadees, robins, car
dinals, Carolina wren, white-breasted
nuthatches are all out in force right now
in our north Georgia home, staking out
their territories. If we step outside we can
hear them singing and see them soaring
around. Another beautiful part of nature
that is sure to brighten our spirits.
As warmer temperatures start to take
hold, get outside and you’re likely to see
some hibernating animals coming out of
their winter sleep. The first bumblebees
and butterflies are also buzzing and fly
ing around. Seeing these guys searching
for flowering plants is one of the feel
good sights that give us a little taste of
the summer to come. Warm days entice
queen bumblebees from their under
ground hibernation to search for flowers
to get energy and find suitable places to
nest.
And with Easter upon us on April 4th,
it’s a festive time of year.
So right now we would like to encour
age everyone to get up and get outside.
Just get moving. Take a walk in the
woods or around the block. Go searching
for spring in your own backyards or at a
local park and be thankful we live in such
a wonderful place. With each passing
day, each nourishing rain shower that this
time of year brings, each ripening spring
fruit or vegetable or blooming flower,
allow the positivity of spring to wash
over us, elevating our outlook, our
moods and our activity level.
As Robin Williams once said: “Spring
is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s Party!”’
Tell us your thoughts with a letter to the editor. E-mail to news@pickensprogress.com
See letter submission guidelines on the Letters to the Editor page or call us 706-253-2457.
Ponderings of a Simple Man
Py Caleb Smith
Everybody
was Kudzu
Fighting
As I was staking out my
garden spot this weekend, I
couldn’t help but remember
what it had taken to get ready
last year. I had put off prepa
rations for too long and,
when the time came to till,
the entire area was over
grown with kudzu. With ma
chete in one hand, my phone
in the other (9 and 1 already
pressed, my finger hovering
over the second 1), I hacked
and cut at the vines that were
threatening to choke out my
entire yard.
After an afternoon of
backbreaking, menial labor, I
was just about done with the
task. My wife came out to
bring me a glass of sweet tea
and to look over the fruits of
my labor.
“Is that all?” she asked,
surveying the heap of dis
membered vegetation.
“That’s barely enough to fill
a garbage bag.”
“Is that all?” I said, disbe-
lievingly, “Is that all! I’ve
spent hours working on this.
And I only took two naps!”
She shrugged and moved
closer to the pile, “What’s
that?” she asked, pointing.
I nibbed my hands over
my face in exasperation. “It’s
kudzu, dear.”
“Not the kudzu, the other
one.”
I scratched at my hands
idly, “Who knows, some sort
of vine. The important thing
is, our garden is ready to be
tilled.”
“Isn’t that poison ivy?”
She peered at the pile then
looked up at me in honor,
“You didn’t touch that with
your bare hands did you? You
know how allergic you are.”
“I think I know what poi
son ivy looks like,” I scoffed,
scratching at my neck.
“There’s even a saying to
help you remember. ‘Leaves
of three, you can touch
safely.’ I really wish you
would give me some credit, I
know what I’m doing.”
After extensive discussion
of the rhyme, and more than
a few ‘I told you soY we fi
nally decided that I had, in
fact, spent most of the day
pulling up poison ivy with
my bare hands. You never
know how much you touch
your face until your hands
have been coated in a poison
ous oil that causes you to
swell up and hive out.
Fortunately, I bounced
back pretty quickly and, after
only a week of twice daily
calamine lotion baths, I was
able to wear a shirt again. My
coworkers were almost as re
lieved as I was.
To all my DIY readers out
there, I feel I need to remind
you of the actual saying of
the rhyme. Just in case you
find yourself fighting your
own battle with kudzu and
other vines.
“Leaves of three, leave it
be.”
And just remember, if all
else fails, fire is always a vi
able option.
[Editor’s Note: Ms. Sim
ple Man wanted us to say to
that fire is thoroughly dis
couraged any time her hus
band is involved and for all
others should not be used
against poison ivy as the
smoke can spread the active
chemical in the plant, causing
the rash on innocent by
standers.
[Caleb Smith is a longtime,
award-winning, columnist
for the Progress.]
(USPS 431-820)
Published by Pickens County Progress, Inc.
94 North Main Street, Jasper, GA 30143
(706) 253-2457 FAX (706) 253-9738
www.pickensprogressonline.com
DAN POOL
Publisher/Editor
Published each Thursday at Jasper, Pickens County, Georgia. Entered
at the Post Office at Jasper, Georgia. 30143 as Mail Matter of Second
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counties; $59.92 out of state.
OTHER VOICES
Rural revival in the making -
will you be a part?
By David Bridges
Interim Director
Georgia’s Rural Center
President, Abraham Bald
win Agricultural College
Regardless of how you
feel about the past year, it has
shown that now is the time to
explore the possibility of a
rural revival. Could we be on
the cusp of a rural renais
sance? I believe a Great
Awakening is not only possi
ble, but I submit that it will
happen. The endless concen
tration of the American pop
ulation to a few densely
inhabited metroplexes is not
simply undesirable; it’s un
sustainable. While the politi
cal, finance and banking,
manufacturing, and service
industries are well suited to
the city, production of food,
fiber, and shelter takes place
in rural America. When it
comes to feeding and cloth
ing Americans, that’s what
rural does best.
There is certainly a great
deal of back and forth about
the virtues of rural life. Going
rural involves choices.
Whether you were bom in a
rural community and never
left, moved away and came
back, or you are a recent
transplant, you made choices.
If you have not gone rural,
what might entice you to
look past the amenities of
urban and suburban living to
choose rural?
The acclaimed Pew Re
search Center recently pub
lished an exhaustive study,
“What Unites and Divides
Urban, Suburban and Rural
Communities.” One of the
most important revelations in
the Pew study was that adult
rural dwellers are not likely
to relocate to an urban or sub
urban community. By the
same token, their urban coun
terparts aren’t that likely to
relocate to a rural commu
nity. Rural dwellers may say,
well and good, let them stay
in the city. Hold on! We need
to think about that.
Rural communities across
Georgia are facing a popula
tion decline. Many young
people move away after high
school to seek higher educa
tion, join the military, or sim
ply experience the world. It is
a fact that young people often
feel compelled to wander,
pursuing the desire for a new
experience. While away, they
may become accustomed,
some might say addicted, to
a lifestyle that makes their re
turn unlikely, but others, like
me, never lost their passion
for rural life.
The problem is that fewer
young people have chosen to
return to rural areas in recent
decades. Therefore, the me
dian age of rural communi
ties continues to rise while
the number of young parents
with small children declines.
If a rural revival is to occur,
we must encourage the im
portation of young people. It
is that simple. We need
young couples who are edu
cated, energetic, and re
sourceful to move to rural
communities and raise their
families.
The Pew study shows that
across urban, suburban, and
rural dwellers, the top three
community attributes that
young families are looking
for include 1) a good place to
raise children, 2) access to
recreational and outdoor ac
tivities, and 3) family nearby.
Rural communities offer
the first two, and young fam
ilies are welcome to bring
their extended families so
that relatives will be nearby.
The more, the merrier. So,
why aren’t young people
flocking to rural communi
ties?
Young families will move
to rural communities when
they sense economic oppor
tunity, see quality education,
and have access to health
care. Let’s take economics
first. Unless you are inde
pendently wealthy, you must
be able to provide for a fam
ily. That means a job or the
opportunity to own a busi
ness. Opportunities do exist
in rural communities.
Oftentimes, we only look
at the income side of the
equation. Equally important
is the cost of living. In many
cases, it is cheaper to live in
a rural community. If you are
inclined to be more self-sus
taining, the cost can be far
less.
Technology and trans
portation have created many
new opportunities that make
place of residence less con
straining. One very important
COVID pandemic lesson has
been that for many, the how
and when of work has be
come much more important
than the where.We have all
learned a great deal about
working remotely. Let’s cap
italize on that in a way that
makes living in a rural com
munity a good option for
more people.
What about education?
Remember, the second re
quirement for choosing rural
is access to quality education.
It appears to me that educa
tion has really come under
fire during the pandemic.
This is especially true for
public k-12 education. Many
school kids have been out of
the classroom for nearly a
year, missing the instruction,
competition, and socializa
tion.
Many families have dis
covered alternatives - private
schools or homeschool. Now
I am not saying that rural
communities necessarily
offer better options for edu
cation. But, over the past year
the bar for educational attain
ment has certainly been low
ered, and it seems that
smaller schools, like those in
rural communities, have been
nimble and have often navi
gated the turbulent waters
better than large urban and
suburban schools. If you are
not getting what you want in
the city, maybe the lower cost
of living, the option for a
smaller private or public
school, the option to work
from home and homeschool,
and other benefits of living
rural are calling you to con
sider the move.
Another consideration is
health care. Access to pri
mary and specialized health
care is sometimes a challenge
in rural communities, but
where there is a will, there is
a way. In Georgia, I think we
may be beginning to round
the corner. With the help of
the Georgia Rural Hospital
Stabilization Program and in
novation like that seen in re
cent years at the Miller
County Hospital and Clinch
Memorial Hospital, the fu
ture looks much brighter.
On the primary care front,
the private and public sectors
are finding new ways to pro
vide more and better access
to health care.
And, the Global Partner
ship for Telehealth, which is
headquartered in rural Black-
shear, Georgia, is now a na
tionally and internationally
recognized leader in tele
health services.
Anything is possible when
people pull together and
make a commitment to a bet
ter life. Rural communities
have much to offer, espe
cially in these trying times. If
you want space to spread out
and breathe clean air, enjoy
nature, become more self-re
liant, and raise your family
with an emphasis on quality
of life, you may want to go
rural!
It is all about priorities
and choices. When you and
your friends make the choice
to go rural, you can be part of
the rural renaissance.
WEATHER
By William Dilbeck
HI
LOW
RAIN
March
09
65
36
.00
March
10
69
42
.00
March
11
69
49
.00
March
12
72
48
.00
March
13
69
52
.00
March
14
73
51
.00
March
15
62
44
.17
If you spot a
mistake, let our editor
hear about it.
dpool@
pickensprogress.com
7065-253-2457.