VOTE! (Road to Change)

Photo: Road to Change by TavyDay

 The surrounding area of my neighborhood is predominately White. Never have I been more aware of this than on today, as I cut through trees, and shrubbery, taking the back path to get to the main road… Given the reek of Skunk, random Deer sightings, and overgrowth of foliage, some would say I live in “the country.”

Tunes selected, ear buds in place, turning up the collar of my coat to block out the cold - I proceed on my solitary walk to the Polling Place.

No sooner than I stepped from concrete to earth, an eerie awareness blanketed me with fear. Snatching out my ear buds, digging my fist deeper into each pocket, I stepped lively, listening closely to my surroundings.

Rustling in the bushes, the snap of a nearby twig, a crowd of angry liberals just around the next bend… 50 years ago, perhaps I would have been met with said situation; however, not today. I am thankful, NOT TODAY!

My imagination soon became flooded with Black & White images of Freedom Walks, Sit-ins, Demonstrations, and of course, the violence. Violence my generation has only experienced through motion pictures or History lessons, conveniently intensified during Black History Month.

With pure defiance (or maybe even paranoia,) I pressed on, staring into the car windows of approaching vehicles, daring anyone with a fire hose, or an agenda to try and stop me - Determined to make my Vote count!

Excited, having cast the 3^rd Presidential vote of my life, I rushed home to share these thoughts with my eldest child. We discussed Rights, we the Majority, and the Mock Voting that took place at her Middle School. November 2020, my daughter will not only vote in her 1^st Presidential Election as an African American, but also as a Woman. A Black Woman!