Letter From Alvis

Dear Mama:

It was so good to hear from you about all of the happenings in Hootin Holler. Things have been busy for me, too. Recently, I was surprised to learn that they do not call Kentucky a state. Everyone else does, but in Kentucky, they call it a Commonwealth. At first, I did not understand the reason for that name because the average or common person here is not wealthy. The average person also does not know why they call it a commonwealth. When I looked it up in the dictionary, I found that a commonwealth is a republic as in the Pledge of Allegiance’s, “and to the Republic for which it stands.” Now that makes sense.

The other thing that I still don’t understand is why they call Kentucky, The Bluegrass State. The grass here is just as green as the grass in Hootin Holler. I guess they thought calling Kentucky, “The Greengrass State,” was not cool enough. It does sound a bit common, doesn’t it? Well, they do have a lot of green grass. You might say, “It’s a commonwealth of green grass.”

Please write soon.
Love,
Alvis