Manifest Destiny: America from the Bottom Up - 40 - Washington, MO - Ferguson after the Riots and the St. Louis Arch

My planning process is a serious "work in progress." If I were you I'd be frustrated as hell with me. I AM very sorry for not being reliable about it all.

Yesterday as I prepared to leave I told RhonnaLeigh that it was a shame that I hadn't gone to Ferguson to report. So, she suggested that we should. She was very convincing and - boom - we were in the car on our way up to St. Louis. It was AMAZING.

There were NO demonstrations or riots or anything like that. It was all clean-up and healing. But the coolest thing of all was meeting a very energetic guy named Lou Bailey, originally from Damariscotta, Maine, who had been living Ferguson for over a year (had married a Missourian and had lived in the state for a few years).

After the riots had smashed and burned out most of the businesses along New Florissant Road in the heart of Ferguson, these great people of all colors and genders came out, boarded up the windows so the business owners could get back to work, primed the wood with paint and then got busy painting positive messages.

When we walked down that road there was a feeling of "after the storm." Everyone was calm and people spoke very gently to each other. The support and love of neighbors who genuinely cared about their city and each other was thick and sweet in the air.

Destroyed Little Caesars

and Painting Plywood Store Fronts

It was amazing though, driving around town, especially down King's Highway and seeing the terrible destruction. Both the senseless ruin of it all, mixed with the feeling that the unbearable tension had to have SOME kind of means of expression, brought home the idea that there might not be "answers, only solutions" [John Lennon].

My sense was that nearly everyone was united against the overbearing presence of the armed vehicles, hummers and heavy guns. Lou said that when he and the neighbors had ventured up to King's Highway with paint, brooms and trashcans in hand to begin cleaning up, the police were very aggressive about turning them away. So he and the neighbors moved on from place to place, tirelessly attempting to sweep up glass, pull wood out of the way, and board up windows. They were SO persistent that the police caved and they were finally given unrestricted access to these destroyed structures.

There is still a 5:00 pm curfew in place there on specific streets. We happened to be there just in time to see the full impact. It was like a war zone or a natural disaster--but there was nothing "natural" at all.

Needless to say, I didn't leave yesterday. We went to "Queen's Chop Suey" - a Chinese Restaurant next to the buildings that Lou was painting at, and remarkably untouched by the chaos - for a couple of soups. I've attached a screen shot of the area. "Queen's" is right in the center of the hard-hit area of that part of town.

It was a busy day for us! The weather was beautiful (66 F), and sunny, nearing the end of the day. So on the way back to Washington we stopped by the great St. Louis Arch.

RhonnaLeigh even treated me to a ride up to the top! SO DAMN COOL folks! If you ever come to St. Louis, please don't miss this opportunity.

By the time we got the top of the arch the night was dark and the lights of the city were cast out across the landscape like an organized starfield. Quite an experience for sure!

So even though I was delayed from leaving, the trip yesterday was very well-worth it. I may even stay the night tonight, because I have so much to post and work to do online. We'll see. And I'll keep you posted.

Love to All!