I haven't been writing for a while, but nothing can keep us from playing BINGO on Thanksgiving!
The year the kids don't want to play bingo anymore with me will be the saddest day ever! We started a few years ago while watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade with my mom at her nursing home. My mom is gone, but they still want to play!
It was not the first fire on the Cuyahoga, but a month after the fire an image of it burning appeared on the cover of Time Magazine. The image of a river on fire sparked a national conversation about industrial water pollution. Cleveland residents had been actively working to clean up the river prior to the fire. In 1968, residents had passed a $100 million bond initiative to fund the Cuyahoga’s cleanup.
Thanks to the fire and the Times' article, Cleveland represented a turn in environmental issues. This event also brought Cleveland Mayor Carl Stokes to the forefront along with his brother US Representative Louis Stokes. They testified before Congress for federal involvement in pollution control which would lead to the passage of the federal Clean Water Act of 1972.
Fast forward to now and the 50th Anniversary of the Cuyahoga River Burning!
The kids and I celebrated by exploring the Detroit-Superior Bridge. Or, for those who were born after 1989 or whose parents could not adopt the new name, the Veterans Memorial Bridge.
The first few years of Ingenuity Festivals were held under the Detroit-Superior bridge. And, on Labor Day and Memorial Day, the bridge is open for tours. This is the first time my oldest will remember walking across the Cuyahoga River. While we didn't go through the old subway tunnels, we did cross the bridge, see some exhibits, and were amazed by the lighting art installations.
Yes, I know that that this middle of the month. But, I'm finally starting to catch my breath from the last two months! And, where the heck is the sunshine Cleveland?!
My baby brother's baby girl is turning one soon and my family was together to celebrate a wedding.
There was a time that it didn't seem that these moments would be possible. Having family separated by distance and sorrow is challenging. But, what a blessing when everything falls into place.
In the fall, my son will be going into high school, at my alma mater no less. I never thought kids and marriage were for me and now I have a teenager and a nine-year-old. I always knew it would be difficult. But, I wasn't prepared for how amazing it continues to be having these humans in our lives.
They are funny and smart. Kind and often exasperating, so full of endless love.
Here's a recap of the last two months thanks to the randomness of my Instagram posts.
