Then and Now
I currently live in the city I grew up in. I left after completing highschool to go to college and would return intermittently for seasonal breaks. Returning to DC and living here for a year since graduating college has given me a new appreciation for the city.
Now I am able to appreciate a lot more of what the city has to offer, and despite its small size and intimate feeling it is constantly changing and bustling. There’s a certain unrelenting energy a constant sensation I feel as I catch the train in the morning with the other commuters that mimics a bee hive, it is more often than not annoying to find myself within a swarm of people all trying to simply get where there going…but I would never change it. I love being able to walk the city, to be able to get anywhere I need to be, I love the go-go beats, the cherry blossoms, the mumbo sauce, I love the scorching summers and the bitter cold winters and I love the absolute power of Washington D.C. In all honesty, no matter how far I stray, for no matter how long, I feel I’ll always make it back.
When I was younger I experienced Washington DC through what my parents presented, and since I was born almost a decade after crack hit the streets they were very cautious. I remember historic U street, museum visits, playing tag outside till the street lights came on, ice cream trucks, hot sausages and sour pickles. I remember strolls in rock creek park and tennis tournaments at legg mason (now the citi open). But I think my favorite part of Washington DC when I was younger was the closeness that I felt to other people, literally there was always someone around, and growing up in a town house brought people even closer…I grew accustomed to hearing my neighbors move around in there own homes. It was comforting. I loved DC then, summer thunderstorms, traffic, and swampy temperatures and I love it now. I will love it always.
xoxo,
Phatz
Culture out the Box 