Nashville artist Morgan Wallen caused a stir over the weekend when he beelined it for the exit during the outro on Saturday's 'SNL'... leaving the stage in a hurry while the rest of the cast hugged. Morgan then posted and Instagram story of a private jet, with the caption, "Get Me To God's Country".
- TMZ.com
Welcome to God's Country!
I live about two miles from downtown God's Country, in Nashville, Tennessee. It has been called "The Buckle of the Bible Belt". I pass seven churches, three CBD dispensaries, and at least a half dozen labradoodles to get to the liquor store. We drink, use the Devil's Lettuce, and breed expensive mutts here in God's Country.
I work from home in God's Country. It used to be my (God's?) dining room before I claimed it for work. I preferred it when I was working in God's office complex, but God and HR work in mysterious ways. Well, not that mysterious, really. Real estate in this specific zip code of the Almighty, is at a premium, and it turns out most people like spending their work days in yoga pants. Namaste, y'all. My company sold the high-rise to developers. I cleaned out my desk, put my table settings in storage, and that was that.
I have a job related to healthcare, which God doesn't seem to have much interest in. Unfortunately, God's president has a lot of interest in it, and so I'm hoping that I'll get to keep working in healthcare. My husband works in media production, which is a very cool job to have anywhere, but when you live in God's Country, there are all kinds of famous people you might get to see in your daily work. God's president definitely has an interest in the media, so we both feel a firm, invisible, and almighty hand tightly grasping our livelihoods each day.
We don't have children, which was a deliberate decision we made more than 20 years ago. We know that God commanded that we fill the earth, but this particular section of His Country is full. And while we're zoned for great schools, great is a relative term in God's Country. Sure, we could send our hypothetical kids to a private school, but even God can't seem to stop school shootings, and several of his flock were cruelly killed a few years ago at a Christian school here. And even though there were a lot of really impassioned, intelligent folks seeking gun reform after that incident, God's Politicians wouldn't hear it.
Interestingly, many of the citizens of God's Country vote Democrat. We tend to want our neighbors to live and let live, to love one another, and to behave in Christ-like ways (not to be confused with behaving like Christians, which is a potentially different vibe). We are happy to have a community where kindness is the way of life. Despite this, occasionally, shots are fired, or people are murdered, or cars get broken into. We're keeping God busy, I guess.
As a resident of God's Country, I have to say, I highly recommend it, mostly as a place to visit - because, as I mentioned, we're pretty full. But if you have a little time, and a little money (OK, a lot of money), come see us for a bit.
In God's Country, there are beautiful places to spend time outdoors, lots of good shopping, and great food. We were supposed to get an IKEA, but the Scandinavian Gods pulled the plug on that, so we now make do with God's Walmart. And of course, there's the music. We have God's Country (in this context, I am referring to the musical genre, not the geographical designation), God’s Americana, God's Rockabilly, and lots of God's Gospel. There's always something to do here in God's Country.
My neighborhood is a destination for a lot of God's Tourists - specifically His Bachelorettes who travel here for debauchery before committing themselves to the sanctity of marriage. God's Woo Girls come and spend money, wear cute boots, and take photos of themselves in front of murals. They rent transportainment (tractors, party buses, and scooters) to move about God's Country, and they make a lot of joyful noise unto the Lord. There are a lot of local college students who do the same. The most joyful (and noisiest) here are those who aren't permanent residents.
But please, don't be turned off by the name "God’s Country". This city has all kinds of people with a variety of beliefs. We don’t really talk about them much, but there are lots of religions represented here. Along with plenty of spiritual, but not religious citizens. You know it’s kind of like the college kids and bachelorettes – the ones who are loudest about it are the least representative of it. Crazy, huh?
Anyway, I recommend a trip to God’s Country to just about anyone. Whether you’re into God, Country, both, or neither, we have something here for you. Make sure you visit one of many of God's Gift Shops on your way out of town. Pick up some boots, or a Goo Goo Cluster. Tell your friends!
Comments