Hang in there, North Carolina

The beating that North Carolina has taken over the past week due to Hurricane Florence has been downright incredible. But so has the resiliency of this state and her people. This place is flat-out remarkable. If you think we won't come back from this, well, you have another thing coming.

But that's not to say that there won't be challenges. Many of us will need to remember the good to get through the bad. A couple of years ago, we put together a list of reasons to love North Carolina. It is a nice list; however, it honestly barely scratches the surface. Here is that list again. Feel free to add  to it. After all, it never hurts to be reminded of what a wonderful place this is -- and will continue to be.

#westillloveNC

• Barbecue
• Blue Ridge Mountains
• Blue Ridge parkway
• Outer Banks
• Crystal Coast
• Char-Grill
• Asheville
• Avett Brothers
• The Connells
• Red clay
• Red Clay Ramblers
• Cheerwine
• Pepsi
• Grandfather Mountain
• Tweetsie Railroad
• Wine
• Craft beer
• Furniture
• Sherry's Bakery in Dunn
• Our colleges and universities (public and private)
• Our teachers
• Cape Hatteras
• Our State magazine
• Big city downtowns and small town Main Streets
• The suburbs, too!
• Sugar Mountain
• Music festivals
• Waterfalls
• Grey squirrels
• White squirrels
• Cardinals
• Venus fly trap
• The Lost Colony
• The Greensboro Four
• College basketball
• Carolina Hurricanes
• Charlotte Hornets
• Carolina Panthers
• Golf courses
• Blowing Rock
• Tim McLaurin
• Lee Smith
• James Taylor
• Biltmore Estate
• Grove Park Inn
• Wilmington
• Bald Head Island
• N.C. Zoo
• Pine trees
• Dogwoods
• Lake Lure
• New Bern
• Bath
• Blackbeard
• Angus Barn
• Carowinds
• Chimney Rock
• Fairy crosses
• Emeralds
• Brown Mountain Lights
• Chatham County Line
• Ocracoke
• Andy Griffith
• Mount Airy
• Link Wray
• Carl Sandburg
• Michael Jordan
• Ava Gardner
• Cape Lookout
• Krispy Kreme
• David Thompson
• Halifax Resolves
• Bojangles
• Red wolves
• Durham Bulls
• Mount Mitchell
• Lake Matamuskeet
• Pinehurst No. 2
• Brevard
• Charlie Daniels
• Randy Travis
• Earl Scruggs
• Doc Watson
• Thelonius Monk
• John Coltrane
• Jim Hunt
• Hanging Rock
• Yadkin Valley
• National Whitewater Rafting Center
• Pilot Mountain
• Lake Gaston
• Lake Norman
• Kerr Lake 

New Bern flooding photo courtesy of Vox; boat photo courtesy of MPR News.