Communities

I have a small wooden plank balcony outside my room that my Dad built. It’s wrapped around this big tree which I can’t really decide if its an oak or hickory. I can hear all of the birds and big grey squirrels from here. I can feel the constant breeze from Mobile Bay; its still a little chilly even in early May. The occasional car meanders down my suburban street, and human voices are rare. This is a nice place to relax after school. In Alabama we have close to three weeks left of the school year. School life is hectic right now with final grades and exams piling on top of each other and clamoring for attention in your brain. Fairhope High School is a small public school. I have known most of the kids since kindergarten. I may not know their names, but they are such a familiar sight it hardly matters now. 

Everyone knows everyone else in Fairhope. The only car horns that honk are for the pedestrian you know on the street. Downtown is covered not in neon, but flowers; put there by the city for tourists and general beautification. I can think of nine different churches in Fairhope alone, and  people that go to them. I always see someone I know at the grocery store. 

Fairhope is a hot spot for wealthy retirees and young families. We just built a new Elementary school to hold all of the new school-age kids. I see them every morning walking with their parents to the brick monster that holds all of them. As for the High School, it is comparatively smaller and older than the Elementary. I don’t really know how long its been there. Most of the 11th and 12th graders drive themselves to school and as a result the morning traffic is absolutely horrific - for a little town at least. I’m not one to follow the mainstream goings ons of my school. Like all of the writers of this blog, I am in the IB programme. This just happens to be the highest diploma programme in our school, and not many people participate. I am one of 19 members in my Junior class. We have separate classes with separate curriculums. We are the nerds with our noses in books and study time on the weekends, and as you might have guessed this is not the norm for normal American teenagers, so by no means is my experience a good example of what usual teenagers of my area do. 

Fairhope is an artsy town. We are known for our annual Arts and Crafts festival (artists from all over the country come to participate), First Friday Art walks (when all of the art galleries stay open late on the first Friday of every month), many book signings at the local book store with surprisingly frequent and famous authors, and a local theatre.The community is very supportive of the school arts programs. This includes our theatre, visual arts, and band classes. There are numerous opportunities for the public to share in their students’ progress. Art is displayed at the local hospital, The band plays in Christmas and Mardi Gras parades, and our Theatre club has public showings. We are all very proud of our arts even as funding for them is reduced all around the country. 

It seems that I have run out of things to say, though I know there is more. Sometimes summaries are the hardest things to write! Have every confidence that I will return with specifics and surprises that will allow the world to become well aquatinted with Fairhope, Alabama! Goodbye for now!

 Maggie
 Fairhope
 USA