Over the Memorial Weekend, my friend and I drove through the Deep South from Miami to Dallas. We drove along the east coast of Florida and visited places like West Palm Beach, Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, and St. Augustine. From there, we cut through Tallahassee and up to Selma, Alabama.
This was my first time to Alabama. My visit to Selma was packed with different emotions. I’d learned about some of Selma’s civil rights history and I’d seen former Rep. John Lewis spoke about his experience at Selma. While I was walking over the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the images of Rep. John Lewis and other marchers who were beaten by police officers using clubs, whips, and tear gas kept flashing into my head.
From Selma, we drove to Jackson, Mississippi to check out the Mississippi Delta. In Jackson, we stayed in a historic hotel that was built in 1908. Our last stop was Shreveport, Louisiana. In Shreveport, we had this amazing crawfish boil and Cajun food.
The whole road trip took 28 hours over 1,485 miles through five states. On top of listening to podcasts, I had a lot time to reflect upon almost everything in my life. One of the recurring observations I had was about my identity, specifically my names (yes, I’ve had four different names throughout my life). So in June’s blog, “What is My Name?” I explore how my identities and heritages have changed along with my names throughout the years. The blog is here. Please enjoy!
Recent Comments