...THE MORE THEY STAY THE SAME
"I'd like to visit the Civil Rights Museum with my great-grands!"
This has been such an exciting summer and I promise, I'm about to get somewhere and sit down. But not before I tell ya'll about this last trip I had to Memphis!
I remember being a kid and being super excited for family trips because I could ride in a rental car, sit next to my cousins the whole way and maybe our parents would let us swim in that hotel pool. Ain't it something how life comes full circle? Last weekend, I watched my nephew and nieces experience that same joy of being on the road while their grandparents supplied all the snacks and their parents repeatedly told them to chill. Must be nice.
My family had taken us to the Civil Rights Museum as kids but this was my first time there as an adult. I remember seeing the slavery and sit-in exhibit and being sad because black folks were treated so poorly "back then" but we have come a long way and everything was different now. Ignorance is truly bliss, ain't it? This time around, in 2019 I was nearly in tears walking through the museum. From slavery, to Selma, the 4 little girls, the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., all the way to Ferguson, I couldn't help but wonder, how far have we really come when you think about it? The shooting of Mike Brown happened in 2014. The officer walked free while we are still left to clean up the mess he left in Ferguson. Just this past week, the officer responsible for the strangulation of Eric Garner in 2017, was able to walk free and somehow, keep his job. And the list continues to grow. Where is the change?
Whew. After all of that we needed a break...
Southern culture is so dope to me. I often think about taking up guitar lessons, moving down there with somebody son and becoming a blues singer. There's so much art, random people speaking to you, and did I mention the food? If you're ever in Memphis, be sure to stop by The Soul Fish (food and service is amazing), and get you some chicken from a spot called These Damn Wings and please, get your life at this cute little coffee shop called Java Cabana! Good music, tasty treats (OMG that chocolate chip cookie) and a bomb iced latte!
Hey ya'll, the moral of the story is, take time to love on your loved ones. I am so glad my grandmother suggested this trip. We needed this time as a family. Just in this week alone I've watched people who I grew up with transition. It's important that we don't let life get in the way of us truly living and that we cherish these moments we have with each other.
Okay. I'm broke now. No more travel blogs for a minute unless ya'll trying to Cashapp me a couple dollars.
P.S. We also visited family while in Memphis and I recreated this photo with the same couch.
Aight, bye.
-BRIT