Mississippi: The good, the bad and the beautiful

For no particular reason, I have been sitting here thinking about the 22 1/2 years I’ve lived in Mississippi. I find this place to be intriguing and thought I’d try to put my finger on why I feel like I do. I’ve had opportunities to leave and yet stayed. These are just the observation of an “outsider” who came here, made his career here, raised a family, has traveled to nearly every corner of the state and has chosen to stay. So here it goes: 

You can’t understand Mississippi by just driving from your house to your office. You can’t understand it from social media or watching the news. Mississippi is the kind of place that requires you to travel, take backroads and slow down. You have to understand the regions, how they are different and how the people from there are influenced by where they grew up. It requires a bit of porch sitting and storytelling. You will soon learn what shapes us and makes us who we are. 

Pockets of crushing poverty obviously shapes our people. So does education, religion and public policy. Race and our history with it does, too. So does our giving. This is a land of incredibly generosity. I’ve talked about Chainsaws and Casseroles before — when the tornado hits your house, there will be a church van full of people with chainsaws and casseroles in your front yard before you can even get out of the rubble. And before you can say help, they will cut the pine off your roof and feed you. Per capita, we rock the charts when it comes to charitable giving. That’s because there is so much need. 

Mississippians are a resilient people. Our friends on the coast are living and breathing proof of that. We (unfortunately) are no strangers to natural disasters — but we’re also adept at recovery. We have problems that at times seem overwhelming. But we also have good people who devote so much of their lives to trying to help. While it may seem like they doing the work of Sisyphus, they actually are making this a better place — And are angels amongst us. 

We are also talented. Very talented. Like the fertile soil in the Delta, we produce a bumper crop of talented writers, musicians, athletes, scholars and artists. Sadly many have to leave Mississippi to chase those dreams — but when they do make it, many give back. I’ve enjoyed being able to get to know many of Mississippi’s artists, musicians and writers. And have been changed for the better by knowing them all. The arts make us special. 

Home isn’t your address in Mississippi — it’s where your mama lives. It’s the town where you grew up. I’ve seen many smart business people never quite figure that out. 

I’ve been blessed to travel around to most of Mississippi. When I arrive to my destination, I am usually greeted by good friends. I’ve joked that there are two degrees of separation in Mississippi — and one if you know someone’s mama. This is a land full of colorful people who make where they live more interesting. (the loss of Ronzo Shapiro in Oxford is crushing for just this reason). We are a land of great stories and storytellers. We love food and family and mix in a healthy bit of faith. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it.

Yes, there is a dark side. There is pain, poverty, racism, hatred and at times just pure evil. Sure, those things are everywhere — but it has been such a part of our history it is hard to ignore it when it happens. It’s cruel and unforgiving. But the darkness acts like an irritant to an oyster — whether it is writing, the Blues or great art — the pain is healed by a beautiful pearl. It’s best not to ignore the bad things, though — they are part of our history. That history shapes us. Like most things painful, learning from it can make us better and stronger. Ignoring it can tear us apart. 

Mississippi is a place that can challenge what you believe. If you open your eyes and observe it, it can make you a better person. If you close your eyes to it, you close your heart. Observing will allow you to make friendships that last a lifetime. So travel. Visit the Delta, Northeast Mississippi, The Pine Belt, the Jackson area, East Mississippi, The Coast and Southwest Mississippi. Pull up a chair on a bluff and watch the Mississippi flow past. Be humbled. Allow the swirling waters to shape you like it has this land. And allow it to remind you of your place in this world.