Living it up with 'Southern Living'

My mailbox stays filled with sales fliers, postcards from digital television companies wanting our business and, my favorite, magazines.

Curling up on the couch with a magazine is a great way to relax, and I love any kind of magazine which is probably the reason I get about six different publications every month.

When I was young, I remember flipping through the beautiful "Life" and "Look" magazines my grandparents had on their coffee table, and I was fascinated by the black-and-white war photos and those of the Kennedy family.

The boys always snickered when flipping through "National Geographic." They were only looking for the pictures of naked tribes people.

But "National Geographic" wasn't about exploitation – the magazine was and is about introducing people to the wonders of the world through stunningly beautiful photographs.

The covers are just a sampling of the wonders inside the pages. Nowhere else can one see such fantastic pictures of majestic mountains, hidden lakes and the open plains that make Earth such a beautiful planet.

The stories are extremely well written, and the authors not only describe geography, they give readers a glimpse of how people and animals live, think and survive. These wordsmiths – often writing on a laptop from an igloo or a hut – can make the life cycles of fleas and the Incas equally interesting.

A magazine I've subscribed to for over 20 years is "Better Homes and Gardens." My mom had a well-used copy of the BHG red-checked cookbook in the kitchen and getting the magazine seemed appropriate as I headed off into adulthood.

Although I still enjoy the magazine, most of the decorating articles are for people who love stark contemporary homes, and the gardening articles are geared toward the northeast or the Pacific Coast.

Few of us south of the Mason-Dixon line can grow lilies of the valley in our gardens nor can we leave cushions on outdoor furniture – the mildew, brutal heat or the dogs will make short work of those.

So, for the first time in two decades, I'm letting my subscription lapse because I want to read something that has meaning to me.

Hence the reason "Southern Living" is at the top of my favorite magazine reading list. The articles are about the South – grits and ham hocks, azaleas and pine trees and buttermilk biscuits. There aren't feature stories about multi-million dollar mansions on the Pacific coast or how to protect the home against an ice storm.

The articles in "Southern Living" are about people who live with 100 percent humidity, year-round air conditioning, beauty salons and dominos.

Their readers are constantly searching for the best way to sprinkle Louisiana-grown Tabasco sauce over every dish at a back-yard barbecue and the best flea markets in Texas and Alabama.

Over the past few years, I've moved away from the magazines that concentrate on fashion and make-up. I've become a fan of practical magazines like "Real Simple" and Oprah Winfrey's "O" magazine.

My friend, Pat, gave me a subscription to "O" right after the magazine started publication, and it's been one of the best gifts I've ever received.

The layouts are creative, and the pictures are first rate. Fashion spreads feature clothes that fit the average gal who shops at Target and the mall, not a size 0 model wearing eight-inch heels and fishnet stockings.

The best part of any magazine, however, is the writing, and "Southern Living" and "O" feature talented authors who write from their hearts.

"Southern Living's" Rick Bragg entertains readers with his thoughts on growing up with shrimp fests and crawfish boils, and "O" readers find articles from women who've overcome cancer, rebuilt after losing their home to a natural disaster or simply survived a teething toddler.

Oprah always closes the magazines with her thoughts, and she retains her connection with those of us who wrestle with static cling, extra pounds and whether or not we're good enough.

Though the pages of magazines, we find our kindred souls and, through that connection, we know we're not alone.

This column was originally published in The Fort Bend Herald.