It was 8 o’clock on a Saturday morning when Jon woke up. He could hear the birds chirping on the powerlines. When he walked outside he could see the sun peaking through the clouds. It created a golden highlight on the grass that caused it to shine like glitter. Shaking his head, he felt the beads and charms on his hair hitting the middle of his back. Jon then walked back inside passing his favorite mirror in the house.

He noticed how long his hair has grown in the past 4 years. You can see his brown roots fade into his blonde dreads. Trailing off to the kitchen, he makes himself a bowl of oatmeal with fresh bananas and strawberries. After getting a spoon and pouring a large glass of skim milk, he sits down on his couch.

Jon flips on his box tv, right when he was going to change the channel, “Breaking News” flashed across the screen. The news reporter mentioned the May Day protest against war in Vietnam. Thinking back, he is reminded that his duty was to put up posters around the block to spread the word about war in Vietnam. Grabbing another spoonful of oatmeal he then heads upstairs to get dressed.

Jumping down the stairwell in baggy jeans and a oversized rainbow T-shirt. His dreads were pulled back and the charms jingled when he swayed. A big glass box sat in the corner of the living room with a ball python. He drops a mouse into her cage and let the snake do the rest. He runs down to the basement grabbing card boards and markers he begins getting to work.

When he was finished creating signs and posters, he decided to go spread the word. Jon heads out to his VW Bus and loads it up. His bus has 2 years worth of spray paint. Some of his friends had sprayed giant peace signs, names, dates, and cool designs.  Darwin, his best friend since preschool, had written “Jonny Boy” with the O’s being peace symbols. He starts the engine and heads into the heart of Bloomington. Charms and gems swing from the rear view mirror. Windy roads cause the gems to sway with the rhythm of The Beatles playing on the radio.

The trees danced back and forth in the wind. Leaves fall from the tops and twirl and flip as gravity slowly pulls them down. Jon rolls down his windows to let the breeze in, the sweet spring air fills the bus in an instant. He puts on his favorite circle glasses to shield from the sun. They were gold and had 2 diamonds encrusted on each side, his father used to wear them before he passed when he was 4. When Jon wore them, he felt powerful, peaceful.

After a long drive down to the heart of Bloomington, Jon parked his bus in an empty lot and began putting up signs on storefronts, light poles, and walls. As he walked down the street with signs, he saw his friend Tyler.

“Jonny Boy!” Tyler expressed. “I haven’t seen you in ages… What are you doing?”

Jon held out the papers to Tyler, “Helping save our butts from blowing up. You dig?”

“Solid, but what about it?” Tyler replied in confusion but takes the papers from Jon. “Gonna explain, dude?”

“Dude, did you not watch the news thi-”

“Just lay it on me already! Get with it.” Tyler interrupted.

“May Day Protest. It’s in D.C. on Wednesday. That’s in like 3 days, We have to be there! Stopping war against Vietnam. We have to go, please? Come home with me, I’ll bring you back later.” Jon smiled and waited for a response from Tyler, who had a blank face.

“Sure.” He then sighed.

It was 3 o’clock in the afternoon when the boys continued putting up the rest of the posters and signs around the street before heading back home. Tyler and Jon unpacked the bus and headed inside to turn back on the news. Again, the news was talking about the protest again.

Monday at 6 o’clock in the morning the shopping and packing began. “How far is D.C. from here?” Tyler asked.

“I dunno, man. Far.” Jon shrugged.

“What about Jane?”

Jon paused, “Neighbor.”

Running back inside, Jane gets a snack before he runs back out to the bus.

“Are you ready?” Tyler questioned. Jon nodded and drove off and started the journey. It started raining when they started driving through neighborhoods and city streets of Indianapolis. It was about 2 hours to the city. As we stopped at a gas station, Tyler went inside to find out how far the drive would be. After coming back out, he insisted on getting more snacks.

Driving through Ohio, they agreed to stop in Columbus for the night. Rumor has that the Crowne Plaza was the best to stay in.