While visiting my parents last summer, I took time to walk the heart of my hometown of Goldsboro, NC. Like many American small towns, its Center Street is fighting dilapidation and pushing for urban renewal.
I strolled around with my camera to admire the changes, but more to relive the memories that seep from the worn buildings lining the street. Sneaking into R-rated movies at the old Center Theater, scaling the water tower under the cover of darkness, or crossing the finish line at city hall to place 2nd in the Greater Goldsboro Road Run (1 mile) are just a few of the echoes that rang from the past.
As I walked, I noticed unseen items and and small touches of Americana that give the town its charm like a welcome sign reading “Goldsborough”, flowers occupying a Radio Flyer, and a washing machine grazing in front of Faircloth’s appliance store. A smile stayed on my face as I rediscovered the place of my youth.
New restaurants, bars, and shops are helping to renew the neighborhood. As the Center struggles to find the glory of the past, I hope it doesn’t lose its qualities of the present.
Duncan Soup - A Dish of Duncan Discourse 