We're Talking Proud

Initially, I thought this blog would be something along the lines of “I Wanna Be Hibernated” and I would talk about how lovely it would be to wake up to four feet of snow and know that you are not going anywhere today.  I would go on about baking and watching the kids play outside and the sense of comfort a warm house brings when you are cold to the bone.  I enjoyed my role here of explaining lake effect snow to wide-eyed Southerners and know I will be called in again in a few months to break down wind chill factor.   However, as I watch all the news footage and Facebook feeds about Buffalo this week all I can really think of is pride.

What?  Pride and Buffalo?  Do those words go together?  Remember all those Super Bowl losses in the 90’s you chime in?  (Stow it Dallas)  Is Buffalo even a part of New York?  (That is what the people in NYC are asking).  Buffalo?  Isn’t that where McKinley was shot?  (It was.) I say yes.  I say you can use pride and Buffalo in the same sentence and I will tell you why.

First, Buffalo is beautiful.  Yes, it has its parts of downtown that are falling down and derelict and boarded up.  Every big city has that.  Have you seen the architecture on the buildings downtown?  Gorgeous.  Amazing.  Unexpected.  Buffalo was the bomb back when canals were a main source of moving things around.  (Read Ken Follett’s  Fall of Giants – a bit trite, I agree, but Buffalo was a destination town for immigrants).  There was money here and they used it to build beautiful, ornate, stone buildings throughout downtown.  Go check out the Historical Society and tell me you aren’t amazed with that building and the thought and planning that went into that.  Buffalo has a riverfront that is improving each year.  They have taken it from something no one wanted to be next to into an area that people drive to on purpose- and pay for parking.  Yes, Buffalo is cold and snowy, but that is only six months out of the year.  The other six is it green, lush and flowering or ablaze in autumnal splendor. 

Beauty aside, what really makes me proud of Buffalo is the people.  Yes, they are loud-mouthed, they are opinionated, and they pronounce every “a” with a hard “a” sound whether they need to or not.   True, they can be a little bitter, a little defeated, some may say pessimistic, but you know what?  They endure.  You think this 7’ of snow is going to keep them down?  Nope.  They are out there shoveling, snow blowing and getting it done.  There is no waiting for the thaw.  You have to dig out so you can check on your neighbor.  You have to dig out so you can get to the one store that is open and bring back groceries not just for your family, but the one beside you.  This will not be the only snowfall the people of Buffalo will see this year.  They will see many and they will do the same thing each time; they just won’t make the national news each time.  They will just put their shoulder into it and endure.

You can do it!!

I am reading all of these stories about how everyone is helping out those who need help.  The people who can help are out there helping, in big and little ways, and the people who need help are letting them.  I never worried about my car breaking down when I lived up there, and I drove a piece of crap car that I put a quart of oil in every two days, because I knew whoever was behind me would help push it to the side of the road and offer me a ride home.  People are pulling strangers out of their stranded cars and taking them into their homes.  People are checking on neighbors that they hate 364 days a year because that is what you do.  Emergency responders probably haven’t been home in days and won’t think about going home until this passes.  They are fueled on Tim Horton’s and knowing what they are doing is needed.  Sure, they miss their families but they know their neighbors are looking out for them until they get home.  Nice that the National Guard has been called in, but they will need to show them how it gets done. 

That is what I am proud of. I am proud of that endurance, that let’s get it done, and the fact that they do the right thing without anyone telling them to do it.  They might complain about it later, but they do it.  They make lemonade out of lemons and make do and do without and think that is how everyone does it.  They love their sports teams and their hometown heroes and they love them unconditionally.  There is a call out for people to come and shovel out the Bills’ stadium so they can play on Sunday.  They are offering $10/hour to come and shovel, but I know that the people who show up would do it for free.  The Bills need their help, they will be there.  Their neighbor needs their help, they will be there.  That is how it works. 

Carry on Buffalo, you can do it.  You can ride this wave of snow and the flood that will come when it all melts.  We are watching, we are cheering you on and we are so proud to call you home.  Haters can slam the Bills and Buffalo all they want, but here’s the truth: the people of Buffalo don’t need rings or trophies or announcements that they are winners – their endurance says it all.