I was recently overcome with the realization that the Northern and Southern states are extremely different in their pace and lifestyle.

While in Boston recently, I quickly recognized that when walking down the street, you should hug the right side of the street, in order to not get run over by a fellow passerby. I found that many residents in Boston walked through the city as though they were on their way to put out a fire, or participating in the Indy 500, racing to see who could get to their destination first. I received my fair share of pushes and shoves, catching the retreating glares as people sped past me.

When we arrived back in Arkansas, I was amazed by the sudden change in pace. Now, I was the one pushing my way by people to get where I needed to go. In the hallways at school, students were stopping in the middle of the hallway, to take a picture with a friend or to call their mom.  They walked about as slow as someone trudging through a path covered with glue.

I could feel myself getting extremely annoyed with just how unhurried people here in Springdale are. It is truly amazing how different something as simple as the pace of walking can affect a society.

In Boston, I was somewhat offended when people would push past me, talking on their phone and not caring that they rammed into me. But looking back on it, it was really my fault. That pace is how those Bostonians live every day, and I was in the way, stopping with eyes wide to snap pictures of Fenway Park, or an abnormally large dog walking by.

It’s not their fault that I was acting like a stereotypical tourist, taking up the entire path to take thousands of pictures of the same thing. They were simply trying to go through their daily routine, and if I needed a little shove in order for them to do so, then so be it. I’ve come to the conclusion that I would love to live in a city like Boston, where they all know what they’re doing, and there is a normal pattern that everyone follows.

While the difference in lifestyle between Northerners and Southerners is large, I realize that no one should ever be really upset when traveling up north, because that is just how they live.

Expect for the man in the big black Tahoe that almost ran me over when I was crossing the street, and proceeded to stare me down like I was a criminal. I totally won our little staring contest, and I won’t ever like you.