Come Sit A Spell

It was not uncommon growing up on Goose Creek Island that the art of visiting friends, neighbors or relatives always occurred on the porch.  When we were young and would ride our bicycles around the island, I can recall the folks who always would give a wave from their front porch….Gerald & Ruth Harris, Wilbur & Valeria Watson, Aunt Rosa Howerin, and many others.

I can vividly remember the porch at Granddaddy Joshua’s and Grandma Elma’s in Lowland.  This is where we ate watermelon, swatted at flies and listened to all of the adult conversations.  Those conversations usually consisted of the weather, what the boys were catching out in the sound, family who lived “off” island, and any passerby’s that weren’t easily recognized.  There was always a cool breeze on that porch.  Their neighbors, Daphne, Doris or Vernell, would eventually walk over as well as others who would show up, especially Mamie and Ralph. 

Rocking chairs and swings on the porch has played an integral part of our lives growing up on Goose Creek Island. Where else could we sit and watch the passersby or have a cool slice of watermelon or afternoon drink?  Was there a better place to entertain our friends or neighbors than “sitting a spell” on the porch?  Without porches, how would people know that it was okay to drop in? Entire life-changing philosophies have been created on our porches…loves are sparked, business transpired, and relationships forged.

Perhaps the art of porch sitting is making a comeback or maybe I am getting older, but I see porch sitting as way to connect with people in our communities.  And on that note, I reflect to those days on Joshua’s porch, where the conversation was easy and eventually as the sun started to dip in the west, the skeeters would start showing up and everybody would disperse …all to sit on the porch again another day.