There was a time when the term “folks” was a little offensive to me, sort of a put-down, I thought, but I don’t think that today. I’ve learned to appreciate the homey, warm and fuzzy, description of my person. Today, in my world, being one of the “folks” is a great compliment. Let me explain why.

    For a long time, I didn’t know the reason that I have always had a natural curiosity for words. I just wanted to know more about the phrases, terms, word origins, and especially the period of time and place the word derived. This, perhaps to some, rather boring hobby began in childhood as I listened to those around me.

    I picked up the dialects, speech inflections, types of people who spoke in marvelous ways, and, of course, those who spoke words that were just odd to me. I also zoomed in on the genuineness of the speaker. Many years later I stumbled upon a definition of this fetish of mine. Yes, I am a wordsmith. I will say it again.  I am a wordsmith. Wow! That feels good.

    Back to “folks” – after research, I found the term originated from the Middle English, as well as Old English, Old Saxon, Old Norse, and Germany. A large ingredient is the oral tradition, or simply put, storytelling. www.dictionary.com  has a great definition – “folks” used as a plural verb describes people as the carriers of culture, especially as representing the composite of social mores, customs, forms of behavior, etc., in a society.

    Well, I may have lost some of you there, but I’m lapping this up like chocolate ice cream.

    I pride myself that I have always had a gut-feeling about the meaning of words, but I was wrong this time. Upon further research, I found that “folks” are considered the common people, the folks-back-home, and the salt-of-the-earth. I continued my quest and found that “folks” are open-hearted, unaffected, and would give you the-shirt-off-of-their-backs. They stick together for the common good, most are patriotic, fear God, pull for the underdog, and offer help to those who are needy.

    A few more clicks on my keyboard search engine brought forth the word “elitist.” Ugh – an “elitist” is the direct opposite of “folks.” According to www.dictionary.reference.com an “elitist” is a person or class of persons considered superior by others or by themselves. They are snobbish, uppity, haughty, pretentious, condescending, self-centered, and stuck-up.

    But, I think, the most unscrupulous of the “elitist” class is the sneaky “elitist.” This down-and-dirty section of the world maneuvers themselves into the back alleys of tony society, where the landscape can be dark and deceptive. With grins plastered upon their faces, the sneaky “elitist” works the room, glad-hands, gushes compliments, and their lack of integrity sticks out all over the place. They have no time for the “folks.”

    As I travel Mississippi, I am happy to report that our “folks” are alive and well, as they happily march straightforward upon the pathway of good feelings. Recently I was excited to play a small role in Meridian Little Theatre’s production of “Red Velvet Wars.”Each night as the cast greeted the attendees, there were several who came to me with sweet comments about this newspaper column, and how they cut it out each week to mail to a sister or daughter who lives away. My recent visits to Quitman, Carthage, Florence, and Hattiesburg brought force additional encouragements pertaining to my written work.

    Many had created scrapbooks for my work. One gentleman explained how he categorized his collection. He said, “I have your humorous ones, churchy ones, political ones (I didn’t remember writing about politics, but this sweet soul has a section for them), and those back-home-memories.”

    I am so happy to have entered the “folks” pathway many years ago. So today let me declare that you are not just my people, you are my “folks.”

    Anne McKee is a writer and storyteller. Visit her website: www.annemckee.net