Fire in the Sky

it seemed like there were hundreds of different fireworks going off in the Miami sky on the 4th of July. Some of the explosions were a part of an 'official' display, but most were individuals setting off rockets, flares, and other explosions. I know that it's dangerous and ethically questionable for everyone to have their own fireworks but I was in awe of this rambunctious archaic un-zoned, communal celebration that turned the night into pyrotechnical anarchy. As I drove back across the bridge and up I-95 I was surrounded by rockets, roman candles, flares, shooters, and the deafening boom of cherry bombs and whistlers being set off on both sides of road. Each neighborhood was lit up with these dangerous (and possibly illegal) displays of reckless expression. From Miami Beach, to people on the bridge and then across the bridge, to Overtown and Liberty City, up through Little Haiti and North Miami, in Opa Locka, Carol City, and Miami Gardens there was halos of smoke and fire. When I got back to my parent's place were kids crowded in the street with an arsenal of rockets. They were setting off bombs and glowing neon green and red missiles. I watched them from the porch before I got scared that I would be shot or catch a rocket fragment. America: you are terrifying, reckless, homicidal, beautiful, irresponsible, free, and always living on the edge of chaos.