"My Chocolate City"
Its 3am, laughter and fun can be heard from the living room. A long game of spades is still in effect and all of the cousins are here and we have no bed time. Outside are the gang bangers, the hustlers, the dope heads, the lollygaggers and those calling it a night from clubbing. We should be back in the apartment but we are free to roam, free to play, free to enjoy our community and damn right it was a tasty a** Chocolate City Night.
Southeast region of Washington, District of Columbia was the gateway to the art realm of nation's capital. I love being from here, the ever so ratchet mixed with the ever so classy meshed up in a town where everyone looked like me. I saw myself at school, I saw myself on the streets, so myself on the bus, everywhere!
Yes very chocolaty, rich in culture, rich in flavor, we had it all in one melting pot. I remember getting my first lecture on Bruce Place on understanding who I was as a black man in society and was instilled the strength and courage to navigate in this nation. I also got my first a** whooping by both my mom and a few dudes from school in the exact same spot, I later redeemed myself (The Media Prince was very ratchet and with all the smoke back in the day lol), but I digress.
But it was those times I cherished being in my neighborhood and it being my neighborhood. The candy lady stayed right down stairs so if you missed the ice cream truck, head to her house, and grab you some now-laters, huggies, pickled egg, hot sausage, rap snacks and frooties. My grandmother knew everyone and just about every parent was allowed to snatch me up if I was acting a fool.
Do not get me started with Go-Go, in my household and neighborhood it was either
gospel or go-go, it was culture, it was tradition, it was life. Rides on the W2 and A4, saving transfers from the day before so you could hold them up behind the new transfer and only pay once a day (before SmartTrip lol) and ride to the station and head to the Mad Chef, this was my Chocolate City,
Mumbo became a staple at age 1 when I could taste whatever my moms was eating and a four wing, french fries, salt and pepper , mumbo sauce on everything was life. is life, still life.
Anacostia Park eating crabs, Berry Farms catching licks, Wellington Park being fresh and Parkland being ghetto, this was life , this was culture and making sure your butt was in the house before the street lights or muggers was the end all be all.
As I reflect today I am proud of where I have came from and where I am going. Though I love the progression of my city and the beautiful things that are coming from the diversity in aqll facets of life here now in the DMV (yes DMV, stop that crap, we all travel the same lines, we all have the channels, same radio stations, same lingo, same food, same culture, if tri-state can stick together so can we, and FYI DMV is where Metro can take you sorry lol thats my limit), but I never want the history of our city to be washed away and forgotten for this City was Chocolate, full of power, full of thriving black businesses, black families and blackness period. Though things have changed, places have gotten a lot safer and pricier I might add, but this here is forever Chocolate. I am thankful to everyone who continues to stride and move the culture forward, I salute you.
FOREVER MY CHOCOLATE CITY!!!!
