Today is Jessi’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Jessi!
Yesterday’s weather, at least until late afternoon, was beautiful. The wind was a little harsh, I guess, but the sun was out, and a giant hoodie was enough to take care of the rest. I had an hour between church and afternoon plans yesterday, and because it seemed unreasonable to allow such January weather to go by unappreciated, the hour of one to two pm found me at West Cambridge Park.
I like our new (semi-new? It’s been a few years, but it still feels new) park a lot. It’s close to Lander and Hopewood and my church, and it’s got a gazeebo, and swings that are big enough for people over ten. My favorite thing about the park, though, is the walking trail. It’s long enough for a nice walk, and it has some sunny spots and some shady spots, and not too many hills.
The trail winds under a couple of bridges, and where there are bridges, there will be spray-paint grafitti. While I’ve been known to sidewalk-chalk the bridge with doodles and song lyrics and such, I’m not such a fan of seeing gang symbols and bad language boldly (and non-washably) displayed in the park, and I’m usually pretty relieved when Greenwood steps in, and a fresh coat of white paint appears.
Yesterday, while enjoying the sunshine, wind, and walking trail, I caught two of these graffiti artists in the act.
Well, to be fair, I only saw one of them with the spray paint. The other, along with his dog, slipped under the overhang to hide when he saw me coming. I walked past them the first time, critically eyeing the four-letter word that was carefully being painted in a bright shade of green. The kid glanced at me as I passed, but didn’t flinch, and didn’t seem worried at being caught. “Aww. That’s not nice,” I told him. “Couldn’t you think of something nice to say? Anything at all. You can do better than that.”
A brief pause. “Um, okay,” he stammered.
“Okay?” I raised my eyebrow and cocked my head slightly, in a teachery way I picked up at Hopewood.
“… Okay.”
They were both still there about fifteen minutes later, after I had turned around to head back the other way. By now, the boy with the dog was standing on the trailway, and his buddy was sitting high atop a ledge, surrounded by various green graffiti.
“My name’s not in it,” the kid with the dog declared. “Don’t look at me.”
I looked up at the boy on the ledge. “Dillion,” I called. “What school do you go to?”
He looked very confused. “What? How do you know my name?” I pointed to indicate the freshly painted green “Dillion” above his head, and repeated the question. “Edgefield Middle School,” he replied, and glancing up at his name, “Oh. I forgot I did that.”
I talked to them for a while. Turns out, they were both middle schoolers, and neither one of them could think of a single thing to do on a Sunday afternoon other than spray paint graffiti on the bridge. The boy with the dog explained that he hated art classes, because he was no good at art; otherwise, he said would paint something nice on the bridge. Dillion, however, felt like taking credit for his artistic efforts, and pointed out the pot leaf he’d hidden around the back of a post.
It occurred to me then that there wasn’t a whole lot to suggest to a couple of bored middle schoolers on a Sunday afternoon. It’s easy to see how being a kid with a dog and no money might choose to graffiti a bridge, with the options they had before them. There’s something very frustrating about that. I love living in Greenwood; it’s a really beautiful city, and I guess mostly because I’ve lived here all of my life, I love the little details that make this place unique. But there are a few things that Greenwood desperately needs, and some sort of place for kids to hang out on weekends and afternoons would be nice. Is there something like that here that I’m just not aware of?
Also, we need a cd store. One with great selection, used cds, maybe some vinyl. Lots of comfortable couches and chairs, and free coffee. Just as soon as I graduate…. but I digress.
Before I left to return to my car, I strongly advised them to cover up the worst of their damage, and go find something less illegal to amuse themselves with. “You could change the world, you know.”
I was only being half-serious, but Dillion looked at me and nodded. “I know.”
song of the moment: The Format – Snails