"Oh, I Tell You What..." "Ok, what?" "Huh? Waddaya mean 'what'?"

Yes, that's actually a sentence down south. A complete sentence, I should add. And people get it down there - they don't wait for the explanation that comes after the 'what'. (And I can totally say that, because I'm from the south.)

I had a friend ask me what came after the 'what'. I didn't know what to tell him. It's just that I'm telling you what. There's really nothing that comes after it.... :| North people would be so confused when the brands of pop all fall under one category - Pepsi, Mt. Dew, Dr. Pepper, Sprite, Sierra Mist, Coke, those all fall under Coke in some places (yes, even the orange and purple pops). In other areas they'd all fall under soda or cola. I once asked my oldest niece if she would grab me a Coke from the cooler (I think it was my graduation party from high school...), and she came back and said, "Aunt BeeBe, all we have is Pepsi." I face-palmed. I epic face-palmed. And then I went and got one myself. Niki asked me why I didn't say Pepsi instead of Coke, and I just shrugged. (Wow... I can't believe she's almost 16. When this happened, she was 13, so that means that I graduated just after I turned 18 - jeez-ums... where did the time go?! )

And even though I wasn't there for long (Texas, that is), I still picked up some speech patterns. We were there when I was little, and the time that a child's brain absorbs the most in language centers of their brains (which is why I will never talk "baby-talk" to babies - totally slows their L.C. down by at least a year or so). If you listen, you can faintly hear me say 'ah' for 'I' or 'rahigt' instead of 'right'. I call people sug, hon, dear, babe, doll, sweets - if you hear it in a truck-stop diner/dive (be it in movie or real life), I'll probably end up saying it or calling someone it at some time or another.

(Just curious: How annoying would it be in I wrote in southern drawl? Guess what? Too bad! Because I'm totally going to do it from here on out in this entry! Mwahahahahahahahahahaha!)

Ok - so, just so we're clear on things: ah = I (or just about any place 'i' is used), ya + yuns + y'all = you, yar + yer = your/you're (sometimes - depends on how much 'shine someone's had or how utterly and completely hick they are), boy = just about any member of the male sex, girl + gal = just about any member of the female sex, sir + yessir = someone of authority (like a daddy), ma'am + yessum = someone of authority (like a momma), huntin' = looking for something/ searching. Anything more, y'all can go and fahnd it yerselves.

Rahght, so, onta mah point. See just how hick y'all think Ah am after this... (or how seri'sly yuns take meh or mah argument, for that mat'er - yessir, tell you what.)

The way Jacobs wrahghts, ya donna get the full effect of the drawl - not of course sayin' she had one, but mosta us do. 'Course, she prob'ly had to wrahght in such a way that would make her readers (her focus group, yanno) wanna read her story. We had read Jacobs in mah African American Lit class, and we puzzled out that her target audience was Northern whahte women of upper-middle class who were somehow abolitionists or connected to one. Why? 'Cause they'd have the most empathy - after all, those women were just as much slaves as Jacobs was - they were nust a different type, confined ta their stations and positions, forced ta be seen and not heard. They would understand Jacobs' want fer her freedom, because they had that very same want themselves ('course, they weren't mistreated as badly - publically anyway).

Don'cha y'all think that it's a mahght bit inter'sting that Emerson and Thoreau wrote of their desire for liberation as well? Alrahght, alraght... so them two were whahght men, and they preached about a more radical liberation - one that took yuns outta what ya felt comfort'ble in - outta yer little box of routine. And alrahght, Jacobs wanted liberation from **Man** himself. But, in a way, so did Em and Thor. They wanted ya to rise up 'gainst what'cha thought the gover'ment wanted for y'all - wanted ya to rise up and be an army of one, to 'rage against the machine' (isn't that a band?), to pull alla the stops and live for **you** and for **today**.

But, yanno, if ya read what Miss Jacobs is actually sayin', well, she's sayin' just about the same thing.

She wants to be free from her masters. She wants to own herself - be the master of herself. And there's not a thing wrong with that. Now, Ah'm a good ole Southern gal, and Ah ain't gonna let anyone own me - Ah donna believe that someone can own another person. Not at all. Ah believe that it goes 'gainst everything that God taught (and Ah am a Catholic, and it's what Ah believe, and Ah'm not tryin' to push anything on anyone - just sayin' what mah creed is, is all). The whole idea of slavery confuses meh a little, yanno - just kinda have to stop, put mah hands on mah hips and scratch mah head for a minute.

Now, the difference 'tween those two boys and Miss Jacobs is that Em and Thor were all just talk, and Miss Jacobs actually acted. Donna know about y'all, but in cases like this, actions speak a bit louder than words. Actions show, and not everyone knew howta read back in those days, yanno. Sure, sure: Em and Thor went into the woods and everything, but they didn't face death if they were found. They didn't face lashes until their backs were bloodied and their hands were raw. They didn't face 15 hours of work and then no food and terror when they fin'lly had tahme to rest. Miss Jacobs did. Hands down, Miss Jacobs wins in the battle of liberation.

But Ah'm still gonna say that they all'er askin' for just about the same thing. They all want ya to question normality - to go with yer gut. They didn't want ya to blend in - they wanted ya to be someone. They wanted ya to stand out, stand up, and be heard for what'cha believe in.

In the long run, did anyone really folla (follow) their advice?

Citizens still obey to police/gov'ment/law. Children still obey parents. Student obeys teacher. Servant obeys master. Inferior obeys superior (in cases of the army and whatnot). Employee obeys boss. Sure, there's no slavery per se anymore, but it doesn't really mat'er. Ah have taxes taken outta my check every pay, and Ah donna see where it's goin' to. (Now, Ah'm not sayin' that y'all should rise up and war against the gov'ment or anything, but if mah money is goin into someone's pocket instead of into school funding or something such, yer gonna see one pissed belle, that's fer damn sure.) Ah have no problem with any of those organizations as long as they listen to mah voice and what Ah'm sayin' - Ah donna want it goin' in one ear and out the other, yanno. And when or if it ever does, ya can bet damn sure that Ah'm just gonna talk louder 'til they pay attention to what Ah have to say.

Have yuns ever been in a situation where ya weren't listened to? Didn't feel like y'all were bein' heard? Ya donna have to say anything about it, but just think for a minute how it made y'all feel. Likewise, have ya ever maybe made someone else feel like that? Ever do the whole rahght hand doesn't know what the hell the left hand's doin'? (Nah, it happens to everyone, so donna feel bad 'bout it, kay?) Just consider it sorta personal reflection or somethine such.

And remember how three dif'rent people from two dif'rent culturs were inspired by the same ideas: personality, liberation, personal freedom, individuality, fearlessness, strenght, and desire for change. And remember how easily we all take such things for granted when some people didn't even have the ability to voice such things. If it's not remembered, it's bound to repeat itself, yanno. Past has a way of comin' back ta bite'cha in the ass if y'all forget it. It donna like to be forgotten, and Em and Thor and Miss Jacobs sure have a way of making it stick in yer mem'ry for a time or two.