Friday, July 17, 2009

The Upsides and Downsides to Living in Small Towns

By Chuck R Stewart

Living in a small community can be the perfect fit for some people, and be completely wrong for others. The suburban houses with Richardson fence look superb and fitting to some and monotone and robotic to others. Living in such a community, with a big house and a fence in Plano Texas has its pros and cons. It is a great area to raise children. Good schooling, safe areas and lots of playmates are available. The people often do lots of things together as a community, building lasting friendships. On the other hand, areas like this tend to be sheltered from the real world. Some people cant handle this factor. It can also prove to cause residents who have lived there for a long time to go into a culture shock when they leave.

Bringing up families in small, close-knit towns seems beneficial to most parents. Kidscan be raised in a well structured and safe community. Most small communities have good school systems. So children have the luxury of a top-notch education with no extra price other than living. Also, the area attracts lots of families with young children, so there are play-mates galore. Children build lasting friendships with next-door neighbors in areas like this. It is a luxury to be so close to their peers while growing up.

Also, parents can bask in the friend aspect of communities such as these. Often, since they are smaller and nicer, the adults have lots of groups and clubs that they can meet other parents through. Men enjoy activities like poker, father-son lacrosse leagues, and basketball. Women can start gardening or book clubs, babysitter circles, and exercise groups. Also, being involved in activities such as traveling dinners are popular. This is where a group of couples go to each others houses for consecutive courses of a meal throughout the night. The adults involvement in such social engagements creates strong bonds for the parents in the community.

However, some people dont like small towns because they are not very in-touch with reality. The perfection and good fortune that the children are exposed to often gives them a warped sense of the world. Also, the fact that most people in these areas are wealthy adds to the childrens misinterpretation of life. Some find this annoying if they have not lived there their entire lives. Also, when teenagers set off for college and things they often experience a big culture shock. Being thrown into the real world after growing up in the clean, well groomed society they were used to can be quite an eye opener.

Small towns are both good in bad at the same time. A lot of the people who live in them will testify that it is a perfect place to live, and those who dont live may disagree. They don't fit all personalities. Raising children in small towns can be an ideal situation. Schools are good, there are lots of similar families and it is a safe area. Also, adults find themselves very social and involved in these tighter-knitted communities. Some people feel that small town have a tendency shelter their inhabitants from the real world. It can be a perfect living situation for one family and completely wrong for the next.

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