Monday, January 20, 2014

Lee-Jackson-King Day in Virginia


In my quest for reasons to celebrate in January,
which for some of us presents a dismal stretch of icy cold
moving at a glacier's pace toward February,
I decided to pay more attention to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day 
than I usually do since it comes at the beginning of the semester
and I'm always over-scheduled.


In Virginia, this is not just King Day,
It's Lee-Jackson-King Day,
a peculiar legislative compromise hatched many years ago
to satisfy diverse political opinions.
So the existing state holiday to honor heroic southern generals
Robert E. Lee  and Stonewall Jackson
serves double duty as a state and federal holiday for Dr. King,
although lately Lee-Jackson day commemorations
have been moved to the Friday before King's Day.


Nonetheless, since I'm always working on that day,
I figured I can finally celebrate it by at least having a southern meal
and contemplating the significance of the day.
That means fried fish or seafood, hush puppies,
cole slaw, mashed potatoes, candied yams, greens,
sweet tea, and pecan pie.
That, or I'll just eat a tomato over the sink.
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