0 in things i have not yet figured out

it is hard to explain the south. we've discussed this. a lot. it is an acknowledged truth. 

but, i'm realizing, it is far harder to explain the south- much less the status of being a southerner, the condition of having come from the south and (even more fraught) of having left it- outside of the US. 

thrice now, i have been introduced as a native of south america.