Once upon a time, there was a young girl who couldn’t wait to get out of town. She thought big cities like New York and Los Angeles sounded far more appealing as a place to live out her adult life.  But after college, she didn’t have more than $50 in her bank account, so she settled for the nearest big city—Chicago.  After that, she moved to Miami, and then the  1972 meltdown brought her back home to Indiana with her young family. And somehow, she never left.  And now, in the midst of all this upheaval in our nation’s capitol, she’s happy to live in flyover country.  

That’s not to say that people in the  Heartland don’t have strong opinions.  We’ve lived here long enough to have family and friends at both ends of the political spectrum. They will passionately argue and defend their viewpoints.  We see trucks flying  American flags rumbling through the city.  And there are Black Lives Matter signs in many quiet, middle class neighborhoods.  So yes, people do care. But riot in the streets?  Storm the courthouse?  I don’t think so.  There’s no big city anonymity here.  Having grown up in the same place, most of us have friends and acquaintances from grade school on up through college and the workplace.  We’re not going to start rioting against our fellow churchgoers, relatives, colleagues and friends.

I was born in New York City, but the great depression drew my family back to the safety and security of the family farm.  Still, I often dreamed of what my life might have been like had we been able to stay.  Now, I’m very glad we didn’t. Did you know that people are leaving New York City in droves?

Here in flyover country, I’ve lived in a state where Democrat Evan Bayh was a much loved Governor and Senator. He  was repeatedly  voted into office by both Democrats and Republicans.  Our current Republican Governor Holcomb won re-election by a landslide.  Both  men are known for their common sense approach to government, and have a down to earth persona that appealed to people throughout the state. There was nothing in the temperament of either man that was– or is–likely to incite a riot. So yes, I’m happy  to live in flyover country.