What's a Carpetbagger?

Ok. I don't want to insult any one's intelligence, but I also know that some people have no idea:

After the Civil War, the South was devastated. In an effort to rebuild and to take advantage of economic opportunities, Yankees moved South to engage in reconstruction. These enterprising Northerners packed up their things in big carpet bags and moved down South full of grand hopes and dreams. But, as you might expect, the Southerners were not all that impressed, and the Yankees were a little confused when their Northern sensibilities didn't carry quite the same currency South of the Mason Dixon Line.

In the end, most of the Yanks tucked tail and returned back home, but ever since, they've been known as the carpetbaggers. The sentiment is not necessarily nice, but it is clever because it carries the double entendre of their transient stay. I use the term tongue-in-cheek, but I'm also aware of the many parallels that can be drawn between their journey and mine.

In many ways, I moved South thinking that I could swoop in and make things better. It was arrogant, and I quickly learned the error of my ways. While I wasn't trying to take advantage of some great economic opportunity, I think many people were suspicious of my motives, and I sensed that this was a suspicion surrounding not only my origins, but also my educational pedigree (if you can call it that!), my youth, and my race. To be fair, it makes a lot of sense, and I don't really fault anyone for their suspicion.

And then, of course, I left. I wish it didn't sound so fickle, but it's the truth. I have other reasons for leaving, but I'd be lying if I didn't admit that the biggest reason is this: I couldn't help but feel like I wasn't much help at all, and once I finished my commitment, I packed up my carpetbag and went traveling. It would have been easy to stay if I could have seen the differences I made and how much I was needed, but it was so much harder when I saw so little change. Kudos to those who found it in themselves to stay, and in particular, I'm thinking of those veterans who teach year after year, and also, Philip, Joey, and Claire, three of my friends who stayed on to teach another year and perhaps more. They're no carpetbaggers; they're modern heroes.