Born and Raised in a Small Town

While driving down U.S. Route 119 in your car, the windows are rolled down, and you are messing the radio dial, you come to a red light and stop and glance around at your surroundings. To your left there is an Italian deli and a flower shop and to your right a row of small houses. The light turns green and you continue on your way, in a matter of three minutes you are traveling through a second red light, and completely unaware that you just traveled through my hometown of Homer City.

Homer City is a typical small town located in Western Pennsylvania; the town consists of a total of three stoplights and is divided in half by Highway 119. There are more bars, churches, and car washes in my town than anything else. We are mostly known for a brand-new Sheetz Gas Station that was built in town not too long ago, and the big power plant in town. Despite the lack of interest one may see in my town, it is the place I have called home for the past eighteen years of my life. It has seen me through the best and worst moments I will ever face, and it will always be waiting for me to return whenever I need the comfort of a familiar face. No matter anyone’s feelings towards this place I call home, it has kept me grounded, taught me so many valuable lessons, and for that reason will always have a dear place in my heart.

One of the major values that my town embodies is comfort. In a census taking in 2000, the population of Homer City totaled 1,844 residents and 805 households. I find much comfort in being able to go across the street for a pizza and spend the day talking to the owner about how school is going, or walk to a friend’s house and be able to smile and converse with everyone I pass. It is a very safe and comforting feeling to surround yourself with those who know you and your reputation, especially when it is one that has taken you so long to build. In Homer City everyone truly does know everyone, and I am free to be myself and not worrying about who is judging me.

A second major quality that I value about my town is its safety. This is the sort of neighborhood where you do not have to worry about locking your doors at night or worry whether your children will be safe on their bike ride. Everyone has a mutual respect for others and their belongings. As a child I was never afraid of walking to the store by myself, because if anything ever were to happen I was surrounded my individuals who would go above and beyond to help and protect me.

Not only is my town comforting and safe, but it is also very convenient. While growing up I always had my friends within walking distance of my home, along with anything else I could possibly need. Not having a car was never a big concern of mine growing up, because at the time everything I could ever need was right in town. Although very small my town contains, two small grocery stores, three gas stations, a hair salon, four churches, three pizza parlors, an ice cream shop, a pool, and of course my high school right in the middle of it all. There were no limitations to what I could do growing up, and the convenience of my town is still something I value to this day.

I believe one of the best qualities of my town is the intimacy and close-knit quality that is possesses. The word-travels-fast quality of my town is not always something to fear. When a member of our community is struggling or going through a rough time, everyone rallies to help them. I have partaken in numerous benefits and spaghetti dinners to raise money to help out people of our community, and witnessed these remarkable acts of kindness. For instance, after the death of a family member, the next day half the town will be on your doorstep with food and comfort. There is such a good feeling that you get when you’re on a bus pulling out of your high school on your way to a state volleyball tournament, and the entire way out of town there are people standing on the sidewalks with signs cheering and showing their support for you, wishing you to succeed. I understand the feeling of not be treated as a number or any passerby to someone, but as an individual, and to be cared for and respected. Just knowing that there are is always someone there to lean on, and someone to trust is the most comforting feeling, and oftentimes what I love and miss most about my town.

Another thing to value about living in a small town is its simplicity. It isn’t everywhere that you can become a hero and grace the front page of the gazette because you scored the game winning basket at last night’s regular season, Single A, basketball game, a game of course where the bleachers were filled with supporters from town. There have been many occasions where my picture has made the front page of the town newspaper for academics, high school sports, and being the homecoming queen of a school graduating only eighty-five students. These are the sorts of headlines that fill our newspapers, not the murders, robberies, or drug arrests that are so common everywhere else in today’s society. It is wonderful to have the simple things in life acknowledged and valued in the community.

One of the final values that I admire about Homer City is the fact that is it so family oriented. I hope to one day raise a family in a town similar to Homer City because I believe being able to grow up in such a family oriented environment was extremely beneficial to me. This is a place where family dinners are a must, and parents would not miss their children’s sporting events for anything. Family is a major priority in town, and most of the residents are families, who come here for the quality education and safe living environment for their children. Family is one of the main values in my life, and living in an area that promotes that ideal is essential.

Although I have always enjoyed living in my town, the fact that I could go away to college and leave everything behind me was an idea that always fascinated me. I swore from a very early age that distance would not be a factor in my college selection, and I would go as far away from this little town as I could and become whoever I wanted to be. Yet here I am, one hour and forty-one minutes away from Homer City and in a town and school that is not much bigger than the one I just left. It turns out after all, that I could not picture myself anywhere else then where I am now. I was raised in one of the smallest towns I know, and despite as much as I try to distance myself from it, I find myself most comfortable in places that remind me of it. After I graduate from college and move on with my life, in hopes of establishing a career, my chances of living in Homer City again are slim to none. However, no matter how far away my adventures may take me, that is where I will always call home, the residents will always be a part of my family and in my life forever. I dread the day when I return for a visit and nothing is the same, the day when maybe they start to modernize Homer City and add a few more shops and stop lights. That small town is what I know, as dull and boring as it may seem to any other passerby it holds some of my most precious moments, and I hope it never changes, because in my eyes it will always be home.

Are You a "Tree Hugger"?

When one goes to look up a definition for “tree hugger” he or she might find one similar to Merriam-Webster’s, who defines tree hugger as “an advocate for the preservation of woodlands” (Tree Hugger). Unfortunately, the definition provided by Merriam-Webster lacks the connotations that society has placed on the word, and is therefore not complete. The phrase “tree hugger” is one that carries much controversy with it, and has found itself right in the middle of today’s environmental debate. The phrase is most often used when describing an extremist, who takes radical and over-the-top approaches to try and conserve nature and wild life. It seems society has begun to use this term in a derogatory manner. However, the term must be looked further into, because it conveys different meanings to different groups of people.

The exact origin of the word has been debated over by environmentalists for years. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the term “tree hugger” has been around since at least 1965, where an article in the Appleton Post Crescent in Wisconsin read, “The battle was between the tree huggers and the city. The city won 100-0,” (Oxford). However, the Britannica Encyclopedia dates the origin of tree hugging back to the Chipko movement of the 1970s. The Chipko movement took place in a village in India where a group of villagers prevented commercial logging by literally hugging trees. This nonviolent form of protesting created by the Chipko people, although a protest based primarily on livelihood opposed to forest conservation, has since been the rallying point for future environmentalists and nonviolent protestors (Priesnitz). The name “tree hugger” once started out as a quite literal description, however, to be considered a “tree hugger” today the literal act of hugging trees need not be carried out.

As the phrase “tree hugger” has evolved, it has come to refer to many different groups of people along the way. For instance, the term tree hugger was once used to describe people who studied the habits of trees (Oxford). Thus, by comparing these people with the Chipko people, one might see how the word can convey different meanings. These groups of people categorized as “tree huggers” are much different from the literal tree hugging villagers of the Chipko tribe that the word previously described. Another group once encompassed by the phrase included rangers who patrolled the Washington state area (Oxford). It has become quite evident that as the phrase evolves and changes so do the different groups of individuals described by the phrase. Today the phrase has become a much more controversial term with much more than a literal meaning attached to it.

In an attempt to fully define the phrase “tree hugger” and its use in the world today, it is essential to look at the connotations, both positive and negative, that are attached to it, as well as the types of people that use the phrase. The phrase is predominately used among the more mature age groups who have had time to experience and understand some environmental battles. It could also be said that the term is sometimes used by individuals of an urban setting. The basis behind this comes from the idea that the individuals that reside in the cities and other urban settings are not exposed to as much green and forestry on a daily basis compared to someone who dwells in a more rural area. Therefore, due to the lack of exposure that the individuals of the urban settings experience, it could be said that they are unfamiliar with extreme environmentalists, and perhaps even more judgmental. Therefore when terms such as “tree hugger” are used, there are often negative connotations that are associated with them. Due to differing values and priorities that the two different lifestyles incur it can be seen why it may be difficult to agree on certain issues, such as environmentalism. As a result, phrases such as “tree hugger” have arisen which invoke different meanings. Although certain groups of people choose to use the phrase “tree hugger” in a derogatory manner in an effort to belittle other individuals and undermine their ideals and ways of living, it is not the intention of all people.

For example, some individuals have chosen to embrace the name and take satisfaction in it. By simply surfing the internet one can see the evident pride certain individuals take in being considered a “tree hugger”. Many internet sites, such as How to Go Green: Tree Hugger, Tree Hugger Forum, and The Tree Hugger Project, promote the idea of the phrase tree hugger and all that it stands for. These groups of people have chosen to use the opposition they face as motivation for their goals of living in a more environmentally friendly world.

Although some groups of environmentalists have chosen to embrace the phrase tree hugger and all its meanings, the offensive intent of the word has caused some backlash from certain environmentally conscience individuals. There are online Facebook groups, Twitter accounts, and blogs dedicated to extinguishing the term and all of its derogatory meanings. On one particular blog, a man argues that he is just a dedicated conservationist who hopes “to protect the last remnants of roadless lands across the National Forests” (UnEARTHED). These groups are dedicated to freeing themselves from the label that society has placed on them.

Despite the efforts of many people to eliminate the label and any stereotypical generalizations placed with it, society still sees the term in a derogatory way and even finds some humor in it. In June 2009, the network ABC aired a cartoon titled, “The Goode Family”, which portrayed and mocked the idea of a family of do-gooders, including a wife who wears a "Meat Is Murder" T-shirt, a daughter named Bliss and a dog who is a vegan (The Goode Family). With this example, it can be seen that tree huggers often find themselves at the butt of many jokes these days, and there are numerous amounts of resources and articles dedicated to negating the credibility of any tree hugging ideals.

Whether a “tree hugger” or not, it is clear that there is a new Green Movement sweeping the nation. Action is being taken by certain determined groups of individuals. For instance, some of the largest protests have been to protect the old growth temperate rainforests in Coastal British Columbia. One of the main protestors, a seventy-eight-year-old grandmother named Betty Krawczyk, was arrested with almost ninety others, and continues to be jailed regularly for defending thousand-year-old Douglas Firs. Another tactic for tree protection is tree sitting. In the 1990’s a woman by the name of Julia Butterfly lived in the canopy of an ancient redwood tree called Luna for 738 days in order to raise awareness of the difficulties faced by ancient rainforests (Priesnitz). Although methods may seem extreme to any everyday passerby, these “tree huggers” truly believe they are simply making a point and raising awareness of today’s environmental issues. Many environmentalists and their tactics have been awarded and some, like Wangari Maathai, even have their efforts and success acknowledged with a Nobel Peace Prize (Priesnitz). These individuals have overcome the label “tree hugger” and have accomplished a great deal of success and made a difference in the world.

It has become quite evident that tree hugger is not a phrase that can simply be summed up in one sentence. It is a phrase that is comprised of two very simple words, that when placed together, stir up all sorts of other meanings and emotions. It seems as though it may be near impossible to give one simple and accurate definition of what a tree hugger is, since the words hold much different meaning to different people. While some may categorize tree hugging as an extreme, even unnecessary, set of actions for the preservation of a few trees, this is by no means the correct or only definition. The way tree hugger is defined may differ depending on what your surroundings are, urban or rural, or it even may change as you age. But no matter what the case is, these words will constantly find themselves surrounded with connotations both positive and negative from which it cannot escape.

Works Cited

"'The Goode Family': Can a TV show bash tree huggers -- and survive? | The Big Picture | Los Angeles Times." LA Times. Web. 20 Feb. 2010.

"Oxford English Dictionary." Oxford English Dictionary: The definitive record of the English language. Oxford University Press. Web. 20 Feb. 2010.

Priesnitz, Wendy. "The Wonderful World of Trees and Tree Hugging." Britannica Encylopedia. July 2007. Web. 20 Feb. 2010.

"Tree Hugger." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2010. Merriam-Webster Online. 20 February 2010 http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tree hugger

UnEARTHED, the Earthjustice blog. Web. 23 Feb. 2010.