Share the Lex

Happy early holidays from the annual downtown Christmas parade! I remember being younger and actually being in the parade. It was a couple years back, in middle school when I was still on dance team. It was freezing, and we were wearing our dance uniforms which were not warm or wind-proofed in the slightest, but we didn't care. No, we just tossed candy around, waved, and had the night of our lives. (Well, not actually. But it was still a really awesome night!)

I'm not on dance team anymore, and I didn't participate in the parade, but lately I've been feeling a disconnection between myself and Lexington (probably due to my lack of participation in local events...oops!) and since I was already downtown, I figured why not stay?! It was a busy Tuesday today: there was school, then volunteering, and then Arts Council, during which we painted a giant mural on one of the walls, but it was also rewarding. I hadn't been to Arts Council in several weeks (again, there's my stunning lack of participation in anything local) and I had been debating all day whether or not to go today as well. In the end, I figured why not and just went. Boy, am I glad I went! Not only had I forgotten how much fun it is (not to mention there's always free pizza!) but had I not gone, I never would have known about the parade. One of my friends, Sarah, is one Arts Council with me and as we were finishing up with the mural for the night, she suddenly had to dash out early, saying she was going to be late for the parade. Of course, my interest piqued, I couldn't resist. I was headed out to the streets to see the parade for myself. 

Above is a (albeit blurry) picture of my friend Sarah and my other friend Keaton performing in the parade. They do tons of things like this all the time, and the perform tricks with hula hoops. Gosh, they were good! I am without a doubt jealous of the way they so effortlessly are able to hula-hoop, while walking down the street, while doing all sorts of contortions and tricks. I asked Sarah earlier how she got into hula-hooping and she said all it took was one of her mom's friends giving her her first hoop and then she spent the next summer teaching herself through youtube videos. Some people are just born with talent, I tell ya. 

I love how lively Lexington is getting. Before, downtown was almost barren, with only a sprinkling of shops here or restaurants there. now, it seems like everything is booming and people are spending more and more time in the heart of our city, developing its potential. It's nights like this, in which there's such a strong sense of community, that make me sad to think I might soon be leaving Lex to go off to college. But for now, I'll just enjoy it and take in as much as I can.