Atlantic Ocean to Green Mountains

Today was a travel day. I had a lovely walk on the boardwalk next to Atlantic Ocean in the middle of a relaxing morning. At 2 PM I loaded up and took off for Brattleboro, VT. There was about 30 minutes of slow traffic on Garden State Parkway south and west of NYC but overall not too bad.

While it was over 80 degrees as I was driving into Vermont, the trees are not in fully filled out with leaves yet which seemed like a bit of a disconnect. My hosts live about 3 miles up the side of a mountain. I will be here 6 days so I will see how many days it takes me to do the full ride without stopping. I am OK if I don’t make it, but it will be a nice contest for myself.

I listened to “You Are Your Best Thing: Vulnerability, Shame Resilience, and the Black Experience” on today’s drive. The book consists of essays read by the essay authors about their own experience of being black in America from many different perspective. Their ability to articulate their experiences in such a reflective manner astounds me. What I am starting to be very clear about is that as much as I want to understand the Black Experience, living with white skin and privilege makes that impossible. The body-cam videos of Ronald Greene are shocking. The ridiculous initial story about that he was killed in a car crash during a chase is a manifestation of white privilege. While the state troopers knew the explanation was unbelievable, they knew there was a chance and hope that it would be enough.

I remain hopeful that by the time I finish my car trip, that I will have a better idea how I be anti-racist and make a difference in my new home city.