365:15 Black & White 4.7.10

It's not all black and white.

I was driving down Southfield road, not far from where I grew up. It was one of those times where the light just draws you in. It had been stormy earlier and then, about an hour before sunset, the sun came out. You know what I'm talking about... The warm glow of the sun hitting all the buildings and making them pop against a darker than normal sky. I love when that happens. I was caught by the light reflecting off these new condos which were newly painted in bright colors. I pulled into the drive-thru Starbucks that was at the entrance to the complex. I walked around this new complex, Spring Haven Villas, for a few minutes and snapped a few shots from different angles. I found the reflection pond that mirrored the buildings and the sky. Then it hit me. I've been here before. I grew up around the corner from here. I went to elementary school with many kids who lived in this neighborhood, but not THIS neighborhood. Where this beautiful reflection pond and new, brightly colored, condos now stand, once stood a large trailer park.

The old trailer park, ironically named Southfield Downs, literally backed up to my subdivision (although seperated by a tall fence). It was the home to hundreds of families. Growing up, I could hear the ice cream truck drive through there and was disappointed to find out that it didn't come down my street. When I was older, I would ride my bike through the trailer park to pop wheelies on the speed bumps.

Honestly, it was a bit of an eyesore, but it was where many of my elementary school friends called home. I don't know what went down when they decided to demolish the trailer park and put in the new condos. It's possible that the trailer park had been vacated by the residents, but if not, then many people could have lost their homes or were forced to move.

I don't know what the right answer is. I wouldn't have stopped to take this photo had it still been a trailer park, but I remember all the people who grew up there. I can only hope that the ice cream truck makes a trip into this new complex and torments the children who live in my old house, just over the fence.

It's not always black and white.