2025 Life Logs, Day 169: Juneteenth
Date: Thursday, June 19, 2025
Weather: Mostly Sunny AM, Beautiful Afternoon; High Temp 72, Low 65 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue with My Shadow, Falmouth, MA
Juneteenth was observed in Falmouth this afternoon …
… with proclamations, drumming, speeches, storytelling, traditional food, and music. The Chair and Vice-chair of the Falmouth Select Board, along with the Town Manager, represented Falmouth’s town government, with Heather reading the town’s proclamation.
There were short, but very informative speeches, giving us the historic background of Juneteenth, a pamphlet full of background information, and student-made posters on the lawn that reminded us of our responsibility to uphold freedom for all. There were probably about 200 people who attended for various lengths of time during the 3-hour ceremony, but I hope that next year there will be even more. I think when people hear how impressive this year’s ceremony was, everyone will want to come. Congratulations to the Juneteenth Committee, led by Henry St. Julien, and Paul Glass. I hope I have that right. Paul Glass welcomed us and gave the event explanation. The emcee was Dr. Seyana Mawusi and Henry St. Julien gave the closing remarks.
I started my day at Soares Flower Garden Nursery on a hunt for native plants. I found plants, but I also had an over-the-top cicada experience. When I drove into the parking lot of Soares, the sound of the cicadas was almost deafening, much louder than I have heard in other areas. Cicadas were flying everywhere, landing on the plants and on my head and arms. I drove from there up Rt. 150 to Mashpee and the sound followed me all the way. Plus, I felt like I was being dive-bombed by cicadas. I was so glad I had made the trip. Otherwise, I would have missed this experience. If I am still here in 17 years, I don’t think I’ll be driving down the highway with the cicadas! I also visited the seasonal nursery in Waquoit and hit their 50 percent off everything sale. So, I came home with more plants.
Tonight, I joined Heather, Jed, and Ollie for dinner at Liam’s while the Falmouth High School jazz band was playing as a warm up for the jazz band that plays there every Thursday night. The high school jazz band warmed up for an hour and then played for a full hour. They had people clapping and dancing in the aisles. So, proud that Jonah is part of this.
Tomorrow is my first Camp Oma day of the summer. Ollie and a friend want me to take them to the beach, and I can’t wait.
