“We arrived in Baton Rouge at night. The lights shining on the water took my breath away.” The Setup, Denise Montgomery 2015
I went on a road trip a couple of weeks ago to Baton Rouge LA. I drove down with a friend of mine. She called me on Monday. She asked if I could be ready on Thursday evening. To be quite honest, I could have been ready Tuesday morning. I think you get the picture; I was ready to get out of town.
She reminded me that Baton Rouge is over six hours from my home. The long drive didn’t bother me in the least. I was thrilled about traveling, getting away, finally seeing something new. Quite frankly, she could has said 15 hours it wouldn’t have mattered. I have been stuck at home since March; a weekend getaway was just what the doctor ordered.
My new normal was getting on my nerves. I longed to see, hear, and smell new things. We reached Baton Rouge around 11:00 pm. If you’ve ever driven down I-10 west into Baton Rouge then you know the bridge that crosses The Mississippi River into the city. I visited Baton Rouge in 2015, so I remembered it being at this point of the journey, but I wasn’t prepared for the sight of this massive structure sticking its head up through the darkness with such intensity, with the river flowing endlessly in both directions down below. It’s a good thing I wasn’t driving, because I would have stopped the car in the middle of the bridge to take it all it. To say it was exhilarating would be an understatement.
We had a wonderful time during our visit. I drove home on Sunday afternoon. I wanted to take in all the scenery to have something to hold onto before going back to those dead drab days of Covid 19 lockdown.
Going out of town was an eye opening experience. It’s good to look at old situations from a fresh perspective. It’s time we looked at the current state of affairs in America with a fresh pair of eyes. Now is the time that we walk away from those old ideologies of the past. We have to start having those hard uncomfortable conversations about race relations and the way we treat people in this country. We’re all Americans. We shouldn’t have to protest and march in the streets to declare that Black Lives Matter. Why is it necessary that men have to die to get the attention of the powers that be? We shouldn’t have to put children in cages on the border to stop illegal immigration. I don’t pretend to know the answers to these questions. But I know the answers will come when we have the conversation.
There is a better way, but we have to communicate and find common ground to begin building new bridges to better treatment of all Americans.
2 Chronicles 7:14
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Great article. By the time I got to the end of the post, my mind thought “People are communicating. ” They are standing on a man’s neck – communicating superiority. They are rioting and looting- communicating superiority. They are marching and protesting loudly- communicating the need to share superiority. I wonder what will it take for us to do what we teach toddlers, “Share.” Just my thoughts.
I like your different perspective. What should we be saying to our toddlers about marching and protesting? What do you think is more effective talking or protesting? Or will they have an equalimpact? Thanks for your wonderful response.