Picture: My Mercedes outside of my new gated community.Like most black men, I love me a nice ride. Actually, silver is one of my favorite colors for a car. I also like my music loud – but I must admit when I ride with it blaring I get a little embarrassed. Especially at a stop light. Dick Gregory is quoted, “Black men like to have their car stereos loud so that they can forget their problems.”
I remembered Dick’s comment while I was in my dirty Jeep Grand Cherokee stopped at Garrett Morgan's invention, http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/gama/gamlife.htm. Then I did something untypical. I asked the guy driving a silver convertible Mercedes, “Why are you driving with the top down on this cold misty day?” Of course, I had to motion to get his attention. He had everyone in their vehicles near him listening to Sade’s Soldier of Love,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvDaJaU5My4. Pretty hot track, by the way! The frail looking dark skin 30 something fella looked at me with so much intensity that I wanted to drive off. I could not thanks to the trash truck, the Monte Carlo with McDonalds ‘graffiti all over it (looked something like this one: http://cm1.theinsider.com/media/0/75/31/mcdonalds_ghetto_car.0.0.0x0.500x375.jpeg, the sparkling clean Audio A8, and the Ford F-150. I was literally boxed in. This time I am okay with it (the confinement) because the young man went onto tearfully respond to my question:
“I have terminal cancer. I may not live another three months. So, I wanted to see what it was like to drive a convertible. I never have until now. I wash cars at the car lot down the road, and the manager let me take a spin. I am trying to get it all in before I die.”
The light switched to the color of money. He drove off. I sat there with the horns of aggressive drivers ringing in my ears. Shocked! Get that, the young man was proceeding with his day; while I confined myself. He went on to live for the day as I sat there blown by his disclosure…
Those of you who ‘question’ my encounters. Stop! This one and most are TRUE. LOL!
Somebody/Something is trying to tell ALL of US SOMETHING every single day.
Lord knows I need to answer that ‘Call’.
Brian E. Payne sharing another installment.
Those of you who ‘question’ my encounters. Stop! This one and most are TRUE. LOL!
Somebody/Something is trying to tell ALL of US SOMETHING every single day.
Lord knows I need to answer that ‘Call’.
Brian E. Payne sharing another installment.
