I've been having "Our Town" moments all day today. For those of you who didn't attend their high school's production of this play, the most famous scene is one in which the main character, who happens to be dead, is able to see one of the days of her life. Appalled by how she was able to move through every day of her life without realizing how amazing it was, she can't stand to watch more than a few minutes.
I feel like my Provo self has sort of died, and, for the few days I have here before I move, I find myself wandering around glumly, wishing I had more time. This is the time of year that hundreds of Southern Californians in designer sunglasses descend upon Provo to attend BYU, UVU, and beauty school. They will spend the fall, winter, and spring loudly criticizing my city. Provonians are so totally lame. Provo is so totally ugly. The food is so totally gross. I don't think I ever really defended Provo to one of these people (we Provonians rarely do, prefering to let our fine city speak for itself at its own measured pace). Tonight, my last Sunday night as a Provonian, I would defend Provo with the ferocity of Monte Python's Black Knight: With blood spurting from the sockets where my appendages used to be, I would howl after my Southern Californian opponents, "Come on back and fight!"
For all its lack of political, ethnic, and religious diversity, Provo is bursting with gorgeously complicated people, and the more I work on figuring them out, the more I love them. They may be close-minded crazies, but they're my close-minded crazies. For all its dry brown summers and wet brown winters, the Provo landscape provides moments that make me gasp at their loveliness. Provo doesn't have any gourmet markets to speak of, but there are enough grocery stores for my mom to make some kick-booty lasagna and for Sweet's Island Eats to produce a menu on par with any similarly priced New York City restaurant.
I'm glad to move to my jewel of an apartment in New York City, I really am. If I didn't feel like it was a change for the better, I wouldn't be doing it. But I am Provo Portia, after all, and I am sad tonight to leave my home.
4 comments:
I am going to miss you so much!!! I hope you keep up this blog so we can stay in touch.
I, too, am a proud Provonian. Occasionally, I'll meet someone whose only experience with Provo was 3 weeks in the MTC and they'll say, "I could never live in Provo." And I always say, "Really? Why is that?" And they say some stupid answer that I don't really listen too because I'm too busy beating them up.
I live in Seattle. But I will always be a Provo girl.
We'll miss you as well! You are such an amazing writer, have I told you that at least 25 times? What an awesome post!
I think that the actual way Californians criticize Provo is more like "I'm so cold. Cause, I'm from California, and in California they always have perfect weather." Or "I'm just not used to Utah drivers. Cause, I'm from California, and in California, they know how to drive."
And they all say it in the exact tone of voice too. I think that they teach it to them, and they have to get it just right in order to graduate.
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