Falling in Love with Tennessee by Jaden Terrell

I fell in love with Tennessee when I was nine years old. My father had taken a new job in Nashville, and we passed through downtown late at night, when all I could see was a tapestry of sparkling lights. Even now when I fly into the night city, I’m struck by its random beauty. No straight-lined grids for us. Instead, it’s as if God had scattered fistfuls of stars into the darkness.

My feelings haven’t changed. I love it for its natural beauty, its versatility, and for the kindness of its people. I love it because it’s a study in contradictions. Where else can you find a classical-style bronze statue on one corner and a giant fiberglass catfish in a cowboy hat on the next?

Its capital, Nashville, has long been known as the Athens of the South, a title the city celebrated during Tennessee’s Centennial Exposition in 1897 by building a full-scale replica of the Parthenon in Centennial Park, complete with sculptures and friezes cast from the originals. The arts are big here, and Nashvillians can enjoy a visit to the First Museum of Art, followed by a Friday night “art crawl.” Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art offers indoor and outdoor exhibits along with special evening events with live music. Other musical venues include symphonies at the Schermerhorn, blues at B.B. King’s, jazz at the Nashville Jazz Workshop, and country, pop, and rock virtually anywhere, including on the street corners. Karaoke in Nashville is a wonder. Yes, you get a few of the usual “had-too-many-beers-and-can’t-carry-a-tune” participants, but then some guy who works days at the local auto shop gets up and belts out a
rendition of “Moon River” that is nothing short of jaw-dropping.
 

With its many historic homes and battlefields (many of which are rumored to be haunted), Tennessee has much to offer history buffs, while those who prefer more festive pursuits can attend one of its many street fairs and festivals, like Mule Day, the Molasses Festival, and the RC and Moon Pie Festival, just to name a few. 

Just want to relax with a drink?
Vineyards and microbreweries dot the state. Note, though, that while Jack Daniels distillery in Lynchburg gives tours, it’s in a dry county, so you can’t actually buy liquor there. You can, however, sign up for a sampling tour.

But the jewels in Tennessee’s crown are its parks and forests.

Just a few miles from downtown Nashville, the Percy Warner and Edwin Warner Parks offer more than 2,600 acres of forest, including trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding. Not far out of town is Radnor Lake, another hiking hot spot where you can see deer, hawks, barred owls, great blue herons, and other local wildlife. If you’re lucky, you might catch a glimpse of an elusive beaver or otter.

The rest of the state is home to thousands of hiking trails, in areas with names like Fiery Gizzard, Honey Creek, Buggy Top, and Grandfather Mountain. From the Memphis flatlands to the Great Smoky Mountains, you can explore lush forests, waterfalls, rivers, creeks, and hidden swimming holes, each more gorgeous than the one before.

Is it any wonder so many of us spend a lifetime falling in love with Tennessee?

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Jaden Terrell is the internationally published author of the Jared McKean mystery series. She is a contributor to Now Write! Mysteries, a collection of exercises published by Tarcher/Penguin for writers of crime fiction. She writes a regular column for the Killer Nashville Magazine http://www.killernashville.com/killer-nashville-magazine  and has a short story, “Peace, Sometimes,” in Killer Nashville Noir: Coldblooded. (It launches Oct. 27!) Learn more at http://www.jadenterrell.com

 

Annette’s Note:  After stopping at http://www.jadenterrell.com to learn about the great work of this author, do stop here https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikerhicks to check out the talent of this photographer.  Well worth the visit to both.

(Photos provided by Michael R. Hicks. https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikerhicks all info provided by author)