In The Land of Enchantment
Historically, southern women have understood and internalized the many
interesting dichotomies of the south. Our environment is a rather
powerful one. We endure extreme heat and blazing sun, yet enjoy such
a lush, verdant land. We are stifled by the profundity of our humidity,
but we are rewarded with the pristine beauty and delicacy of fragrant,
jewel-like flowers.
Indeed, this is the foundation of true southern beauty. Our beauty is
wrought in our resistance to the withering effects of our environment. We
endeavor to remain serene and fresh in the midst of heat, strife, and
trial.
The World of Charm
We choose to create for ourselves a preferred environment, one which
allows for our own cultivation. Just as a pretty magnolia blossom rests
in its blue-green shade and is at its loveliest under proper
conditions.
So, the southern woman maintains her own proper conditions. Behind the
antebellum brick and old wrought iron and nestled in the tangled depths of
ancient gardens she lives a life apart, it is the garden within her. The cool, still green of inner reserve is where
she treads. She is in the company of her
own thoughts and she guides her thoughts to the lush, gentle landscapes of care
and reverence and repose.
This is the legacy of old southern beauty.
It is cultivated from within.