Homecoming Parade
Our great-granddaughter is a cheerleader. This is her first year and she is understandably excited. This past Friday was Homecoming at the school which, of course involves a football game in the evening. Before that, however, is the Homecoming Parade that travels through our little town and makes its way to the school. Our little cheerleader was in the parade so Grandma and Grandpa decided to attend.
We hadn’t gone to the parade in many years. It’s kind of embarrassing because the parade route passes within a block of our home. But we made it this year to support our cheerleader if not the hometown.
As soon as we left the house and headed downtown we recognized the commotion. There was excitement in the air. A Homecoming is special in a small town.
When we got downtown we spotted an empty spot at the curb and so we claimed it as our own. We chatted a bit with others in the vicinity and got to know our neighbors. A lot of the older folks were there for the same reason we were. A family member or family of a friend was involved.
I looked about and took in the spectacle. Folks lined up along the curb or standing directly behind someone who was. Someone had set up a hotdog stand nearby. I guess I wasn’t curious enough to walk over and find out who it was. Perhaps a local church using it as a fundraiser. In past years I’ve seen a popcorn machine set up too but I didn’t see it this year.
There were little kids, with their parents, excited not only for the parade but also because parade participants would be throwing candy to them as they passed by. There were middle-school kids there too, happy to be off their tether and allowed to socialize with their own kind in a feral sort of way. This included a couple of small herds of young girls who seemed to be on some kind of urgent mission based on the way they scampered from one location to another.
The parade began at 5:30 sharp with the blast of sirens from the various police cars that were in the lead. That was followed by the local marching band. If you were hoping for world class music you were destined to be disappointed. But this is where world class music begins. I have the highest praise for local band directors who can somehow wrangle these children and teach them how to play their various instruments while marching. Oh….and the music was still pretty darn good.
The parade continued with a succession of convertible cars carrying the Homecoming King and Queen and their court two-by-two. There were a few more vehicles carrying members of various charities and, of course, the cheerleaders. The passengers of all of these vehicles were throwing handfuls of candy to the children as they passed. All of the kids had plastic bags full of the candy they had collected. It was a pretty good precursor to Halloween. I doubt the candy would last that long but their weekend was looking promising.
Many of vehicles were provided by or sponsored by local businesses and so also doubled as rolling billboards. My wife and I lamented that there were no traditional floats. That used to be a big deal when we were in school during the dark ages. And then another blast of sirens as a firetruck and ambulance passed, announcing the end of the parade. Our little parade had lasted about 15 minutes.
During the time we were there I spent a moment to take it all in. The folks there were from all walks of life all along the economic spectrum. There was no question that many differing socio/political views were well represented. But none of that mattered this night. This was homecoming in our town. The town that belonged to all of us. The town that we all cared about.
If all you knew about America was what you saw in the news you would be disappointed in what had become of the American Dream. But when you balance that with our little Homecoming Parade, which is little different from homecoming parades in every town across America, you get a much more balanced view. Yes we have our problems. You can list them as easily as I can. But we have our good points too and they should be listed just as often to remind us of how lucky we are. I’ll start…..Homecoming Parade.
