Tom Rupp commentary: The continuing adventure of a small and growing city

Johnny Cash sang "I've Been Everywhere." Well, I haven't been everywhere, but over the years, I have lived in various towns and cities of various sizes. How about you? Just last Sunday marked 50 years since I first left Baltimore for Greenville, South Carolina. It was my first time on a plane, Eastern Airlines (remember them?). And it was a small city. Upon finishing my education at Holmes Bible College, I moved to Central, South Carolina, to continue at Southern Wesleyan University. Central was a very small town, right next to the more famous college town of Clemson. In Central, I also met Tom Rupp. Yes, another youngster who shared my name. We actually worked next to each other as baggers at Ingles grocery store. A daily train ran regularly through the town. In less than two years, I then moved to Orange, Virginia. The small-town saga continued. At that time, this city boy missed the big city lights. But these small towns had their own particular charm, and I developed fond memories in each one of them. Next came Chesapeake, Virginia, another small city like Greenville. Then, I lived in Dunn, North Carolina, back to small-town living. Finally, in 1999, I moved to the large town of Folsom, California. At that time, it was just starting to experience growth, with a population of 52,000 or so. There are differences between a small town, large town, small city and a big city. Time passes, life happens, growth happens. Now we are bursting with 84,000 citizens. It's not 1980 anymore, or 1999, or 2020 for that matter. Things are changing around here. We are definitely a small city. These thoughts came to me as I read last week's newspaper. Here are plans for another section of the south-of-50 expansion. Here are four new planning commissioners getting sworn in. Growth continues. Carol says Folsom reminds her of San Jose 50 years ago. You can take that observation's implications both positively and negatively. A lot of folks who remember the '60s and '70s repeat the phrase "cowtown," and say it accurately reflects what used to be. It's not that way anymore. We used to be a "prison town," and an "Intel town." And while these are still around, they no longer define who we primarily are. Folsom's future is sure. What isn't so sure is what it will be. Tom Rupp is a Folsom resident and weekly Telegraph columnist. You can reach him at truppfolsom@yahoo.com.