The Unstoppable City

If someone would have told me that 2020 was going to be this crazy when I graduated from high school, I would have laughed in disbelief. Saying that COVID-19 has changed my life would be an understatement. I went from being a carefree college student with freedom and friends to a stressed-out online college student told that I cannot up past 12 am. I feel like a bird whose cage is made up of fear and uncertain outcomes.

The reason why I chose these pictures is that this is what a virus looks like to me. I live in Memphis, Tennessee; a city that is no stranger to a good time; especially, during the spring and summer. However, the virus has turned my city into a silent and tense area. There is a street by the name of Beale Street that is usually filled with laughter, BBQ, and blues, but now it is empty. Highway 40 is one of the biggest and busiest expressways in Memphis that reach from the south to the north of the city. It is now vacant due to people staying at home. The roadblock seen in the photo is up not because the road is under construction, but to keep people from going to the park and socializing with each other.

Coronavirus has turned my city into a shell of itself. The people of Memphis are fighters, rebels, and unstoppable people. This is not my city first pandemic and we bounced back. This is not my city’s first time being unemployed at large numbers, but we make it through. So, the tree seen above is a symbol of hope. This tree is placed at the beginning of my street. This tree has been in my neighborhood since before the neighborhood was built. This tree has stood against deadly weather, a drought, and gentrification. This is my hope tree. My city will get through this with blues and a whole lot of food.

-Briana Lawson