G-town Saturday

"It's about folks catching hell, it’s about folks wrestling with social misery, it’s about folks trying to come to terms with their grief and their pain but transfiguring it into vision."--Dr. Cornel West

This is us on Saturday when Barack Obama came to our neighborhood. Through friends of friends we stood in this amazing backyard that was back to back with Vernon park. We packed the double stroller like we pack for the beach-- fruit, water, heartening savory snacks. The end of the line to get into Vernon Park was imperceptible. That same morning a friend left a message on our machine, "I know you have an aversion to Vernon Park but you'll never guess who's gonna be there!" I have an aversion to this park because even though it's walkable, it is the park of whinos, of breadlines, of dimebags on the swings and used condoms under the curly slide. I was in disbelief that a presidential candidate was coming not only to Philly but to our backyard. And not only to our backyard but our stanky, poor, addiction-rife, crime-ridden backyard.

The streets poured with so many disparate groups--we saw teachers from Manny and Benicio's school, chipper and game in their Birkenstocks and travel mugs. Also tons of young mamas wearing their babies all the Snuglis and groggy parents. And then there were the grandmas out in full force with Barack T-shirts and American flag bandanas. At first we were discouraged by the line and decided to go home. Later, we found a spot where we could hear the music, and figured it was a good enough place to stand. That's when we ran into a friend of a friend who invited us around the corner. We went up these steps and pushed open this gate onto this amazing yard. It was three backyards where the fences had been taken down. They had a veggie patch and a hen house, a worn old yew tree for climbing and other low trees which our kids were immediately drawn to. Such a serendipitous oasis in the' hood! We ended up finding that we could see through the trees. They tried climbing these holly shrub-trees, Zaccheus style. There we were peering through trees and fences, catching glimpses while listening to Barack's words. Benicio says, "He was smaller than a double-A battery, but we saw him!" And by the time Rendell and Nutter had introduced him, other folks had found their way back to the fence and stood with us. Some familiar faces and some totally unfamiliar, even people if I saw on the street would really give me pause and raise my defenses. I don't know that the photos do it justice but there was a very palpable sense of hope. I could stand shoulder to shoulder with so many different people and enter into an energy that is pregnant with possibility. Whatever happens with the election, I am deeply inspired by Obama's ability to inspire so much hope and energy around what is possible.