Editor's Note

River Magic

Igrew up on the banks of the Mississippi River. That great, wide, muddy, and powerful beast that separates east from west and, like our coastal rivers and estuaries here, influences everything it touches. I waded through it to evacuate as a child, drank my first beer at a bonfire beside it, and kissed that first boy parked on a bluff overlooking it. Later, when I was old enough to venture out on my own, I followed it south to Memphis and New Orleans on road trips, where I first heard the music I’ve loved ever since: the blues. That was also the closest saltwater, and I fell in love with the bayous and swamps. If I couldn’t live here on this stretch of coast, the Mississippi Delta would be my next choice.

When Grant Porter told me he’d brought a little bit of the Delta here to the Georgia coast, I was enthralled.

Grant's family is from the Delta and he spent holidays and summer vacations there as a kid; he also has a love for the water and the blues. When he and his business partner, Kevin Hofkin, bought and began restoring Half Moon Marina last year (see page 16), they thought a little positive Juju couldn’t possibly hurt. Grant traveled back to the waters of his youth and filled three bottles.

The first was with water from the mighty Mississippi, for strength. The second was water from the Sunflower River, a tributary that flows through Clarksdale, Miss., home of the

Kevin (left) and Grant with bottles of water from three special rivers. Photo provided by Half Moon Marina

Delta Blues Museum, for its creative and artistic powers. And the third was water from the Tallahatchie River. Remember the song Ode to Billie Joe (who jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge)? This water was for a bit of “bad boy” gumption.

On the day the new cement floor was poured at Half Moon, Grant and Kevin poured those bottles of river water into the cement mixer, stirring that strength, creativity and bad boy attitude into the very floor, on which everything else is built.

I do believe it’s working. Half Moon Marina already had a steady river running deep alongside it, beautiful sunsets, a lovely and supportive community around it, and two dedicated and determined owners with a shared vision. Now it has a bit of spirit and magic, as well. (And they didn’t have to sell their souls to the Devil!)

I love hearing stories like this one and sharing them with all of you. It’s why I became a writer and one reason I started this magazine. If you know of, or have stories of your own you wouldn’t mind sharing, please get in touch. I’ll do my best to do them justice.

In the meantime, I might be found having a beer at Half Moon, watching the sun go down over the river, and maybe I’ll be able to hear the ghosts of Big Mama Thornton, Robert Johnson, or B.B. King singing along with the breeze.

See you out there! Amy Thurman Editor in Chief amy@southerntidesmagazine.com

The Mississippi River, October 2021. I go down to the river every trip back. This very spot was the site of countless Friday and Saturday night bonfires when I was young.