Went for a trip to my hometown over the weekend. I’ve been travelling a lot the last year and whenever I come to my home town its a mixed feeling.

I guess I still have hometown pride but I felt somewhat more of a stranger at this year’s parade than years past.

I don’t know maybe its growing, maybe its letting go.

From a screenwriter’s standpoint ever notice how most parades at least small town to medium town and their accompanying carnivals really show windows or glimpses into a community. I got to thinking how relevant parade scenes are or aren’t in movies especially low to medium budget.

This weekend specifically was a neat picture to paint.

I’m not going to screenwrite it here but I’ll paint it. (“True events perhaps sensationalized a wee bit.”)

Time was ticking near six o’clock on a hot, muggy, humid July afternoon. You could see the crowds anticipation but this particular parade this particular year was a scenario with split human and animalistic anticipation as everyone’s senses were periodically turned to a dark forboding purple hue sky with flickers of multi-colored yellow and orange lighting wafting the sulfer smell down assaulting the crowd. Periodic sprinklings were falling. The split view of sunshine ahead and mother nature’s dark force behind really caused a buzz and rumble of the crowd.

Some of the crowd had awareness to leave. Some of the crowd had decided to stay. Everyone who did stay was prepared as lighting flickered and thunder rumbled while sirens blared with flashing lights. The parade and the storm both were seemingly forthcoming but it was as if the community had the power and will to push the thunderstorm around them with all their might or they thought they would not be denied their gathering, community voice. You know, why they came to be where they are, their sense of purpose.

The rain stayed away other than a few droplets, the wind shifted allowing the town to evade the storm, have their parade and finsish their sense of purpose for that event. Me too and that’s before I even paint the pictures of character. Hmm. The screenwriting painter. Interesting concept.

Michael Lee Burris

“I will never stop driving a creative revolutionary wheel of desire and determination always needing genuine help along the way.”