Author: Charleston Daily

By Mark A. Leon

Once upon a time, there was a soft spoken Southern girl from the cotton fields of Andrews, South Carolina.  This was a town where horses roam free, haystacks reached to the sky, rocking chairs still ache and an old Texaco sign remind you of the way it used to be.  This girl symbolized something special.  With her slow romanticized dialogue and warm inviting eyes, it was hard to not melt in her presence.

As I look back on the time I spent with her, I remember a few special moments:

It was Friday morning and we were just a boy and girl holding hands on swinging bench tied between two trees in the front yard.  As we let the sun set into the sky, coffee in hand, we looked in each others eyes as the world stopped for just one moment in time.

As we continued to smile, erasing the thought of life’s responsibilities, we started pondering how we could bring a sparkle to her kids when they got home from school.  We soon began to gather all the pine cones we could find and spelled their name out under the tree.  When they got home, they were so excited, they wanted to spell our names out next to theirs.  This led to an afternoon of nature’s crafts, trampoline and family fun.

That day has never left my memory.

I now recall a cool November night at Morgan Creek when we engulfed ourselves with oysters and chili as local tunes played in the distance.  The night would not have been complete without s’mores by the fire overlooking the creek.  That girl knew her way around a fire and never looked more beautiful.  Though hundreds, surrounded us, the night was about her and I.

The moment that I knew.  The moment when I realized that dating a Southern girl is much bigger than yourself was at a 12-person outdoor brunch at Boone’s on King Street.  She was the only Southern girl and we she spoke, the table erupted in admiration.  She was like a novelty that you wanted to hug and never let go.  All I could do was smile.

I never forget this love.  With her fiery independence, sensual passion and innocent charm, she was an angel who released so much love.  That is the feeling you get when you fall for a Southern girl.

To some, Southern girls have a stigma that they want to be showered with gifts and luxuries; that they need a big home and expensive jewelry; that they need constant attention.  That is so far from the truth.  A true Southern girl is generous, caring, warm and believes that simple living with someone that gives completely of themselves is all the happiness you need in life.

My Southern girl was named Priscilla.  She may not have dressed the part of a Southern Belle, wore a bonnet and carried a baby blue umbrella.  She may not have waited for me to lay a blanket over a puddle, but there was never a day that went by that I didn’t feel like the luckiest man on Earth.

Take the grit and beauty of Daisy Duke, the maternal instincts of Lorelai Gilmore and the romantic edge of Anastasia Steele and you come close to a Southern girl.  A little rock, a lot of country and a complete woman.

That is the way a Southern girl makes you feel.  She makes the breeze a little cooler, the simple things feel more important and the value of love felt a little deeper.For those fortunate enough to find a love from the Southern land, hold on tight, but not too tight.  Treat her right and she will love you until the end of time.