Southern by birth, Loud by breeding.

Y'all meet my best friend, Cassie. She's a lil' Southern Sparkplug in my book too, but some just call her Southern with a little bit of twang. She'll "Bless Your Heart" up and down the road and "Oh, Honey" you until you finish your story. I've asked her to be my guest blogger this week after she responded to an article that I posted. She has the best one-liners that she wraps into a post about being proud to be from the South. I'm pretty sure she'll be around for quite sometime as a guest blogger!

Guest Blogger: Cassie

"For my mother, being Southern means handwritten thank-you notes, using a rhino horn’s worth of salt in every recipe, and spending a minimum of twenty minutes a day in front of her makeup mirror so she can examine her beauty in “office,” “outdoor,” and “evening” illumination. It also means never leaving the house with wet hair. Not even in the case of fire. Because wet hair is low-rent. It shows you don’t care, and not caring is not something Southern women do, at least when it comes to our hair."

Recently a good friend (Southern Sparkplug) re-posted this article on her Facebook. There was much more to it then just this part but the overall message was the same: "The reason we Southern women take care of ourselves is because, simply, Southern women are caretakers."

Although the overall message of the story was pretty on point for many southern darlings, I couldn't help thinking loudly and with a strong twang..."girl your southern belle is nothing compared to my southern spark!"

I firmly believe in being presentable, living a God fearing life, and showing respect to everyone around you whether they have earned it or not. I believe in thank-you notes and making sure you are dressed appropriatly for whatever the occasion may be. But more importantly I believe there are things in my upbringing that many of these southern darlings miss out on while making sure their hair was perfectly quaffed.

My south sits on the sandy beaches of a beautiful Gulf of Mexico. But my mother is no beach bum. She's a loud, hardworking southern woman who's voice can be heard from across an arena (I know this for a fact, it's happened). She raised me on please, thank you, and a list full of idioms. Quirky saying such as "it's cold as a witches titty." It took years for her to finally add the "in a brass bra" ending to this saying. Another favorite was always "I don't know him from Adams house cat." We had a neighbor named Adam, he didn't have a cat. You can imagine the confusion that came with this as a small child. Even though I hardly understood the woman sometimes I loved her ideas as to how a southern woman should be. "Why comb your hair when the 4 wheelers just going to mess it up anyways." "Why put on makeup in a mirror when the beach gives you the perfect shade of blush." I was told to be respectful, be presentable, but if a boy tries to beat you to the river rope swing you run on ahead and show him how its done first sugar." Her actions showed me not to be afraid to sing Garth Brooks or Alabama at the top of my lungs, even when I'm looked at funny.

All of these things were taught and sometimes spanked into me early on. But the most important lesson, and the one I took away from the article was when they referred to us southern charmers as "caretakers." My mother has raised hoards of children, only 3 of which were hers. I have friends who have called her mom since the first day she came loudly into their lives and even as a teacher. I've watched her "mom" her way through work, paying for students prom tickets, SAT fees, and study guides. If a southern woman is anything, it is surely a caretaker. We love with all we have in us and we don't give up on a lost cause. This is the model I was raised on.

Whether I'm a southern bell or sparkplug is up to fate.

Garden and Fun - Redifining Southern Belle