Where I'm From: Roxie
I am from mirrors, from Hershey bars and Maybelline.
I am from the hot, muggy touch of Georgia air clinging to my skin and ruining my makeup and curled hair in the process.
I am from the live oak trees surrounding our plantation, from the famous Georgia peaches we toiled for every year.
I am from making twelve pies for our big Monroe family reunion each summer and the crystal-blue eyes on Mama’s side of the family, from Grandma Susan and Grandpa Joe and my aunt Selena Roxie, who was the first one to ever leave Georgia in my family.
I am from Mama’s craving for fame, and from Daddy’s zeal for pursuing your dreams.
From don’t step on the peaches sweetheart, pick ’em up; and from Daddy saying, you’re a true Georgia beauty honey.
I am from Southern preachers praising the Lord Almighty for another day in paradise; from it doesn’t matter what the heck happens you best be at church Sunday morning like you’re supposed to.
I'm from the piedmont and coastal plains of Georgia, from peaches and more peaches and peaches upon peaches.
From how my great-great-Uncle Samuel founded the Monroe family plantation years ago, from the time my grandfather fought valiantly for the Confederate States of America, and from the story of how my long-lost aunt Selena Roxie ran away to Tennessee to become a famous singer and was never heard from again.
I am from the dried flowers my father gave to me when I was little, and the precious photos of the both of us that I laid all in a box and buried under my father’s special peach tree the day that Daddy died; the day that I turned nineteen and something in me snapped. I am from heartbreak and missing my Daddy and trying to create a better future for myself, if only so that I can finally run away from my past.
I am from the hot, muggy touch of Georgia air clinging to my skin and ruining my makeup and curled hair in the process.
I am from the live oak trees surrounding our plantation, from the famous Georgia peaches we toiled for every year.
I am from making twelve pies for our big Monroe family reunion each summer and the crystal-blue eyes on Mama’s side of the family, from Grandma Susan and Grandpa Joe and my aunt Selena Roxie, who was the first one to ever leave Georgia in my family.
I am from Mama’s craving for fame, and from Daddy’s zeal for pursuing your dreams.
From don’t step on the peaches sweetheart, pick ’em up; and from Daddy saying, you’re a true Georgia beauty honey.
I am from Southern preachers praising the Lord Almighty for another day in paradise; from it doesn’t matter what the heck happens you best be at church Sunday morning like you’re supposed to.
I'm from the piedmont and coastal plains of Georgia, from peaches and more peaches and peaches upon peaches.
From how my great-great-Uncle Samuel founded the Monroe family plantation years ago, from the time my grandfather fought valiantly for the Confederate States of America, and from the story of how my long-lost aunt Selena Roxie ran away to Tennessee to become a famous singer and was never heard from again.
I am from the dried flowers my father gave to me when I was little, and the precious photos of the both of us that I laid all in a box and buried under my father’s special peach tree the day that Daddy died; the day that I turned nineteen and something in me snapped. I am from heartbreak and missing my Daddy and trying to create a better future for myself, if only so that I can finally run away from my past.