Look, Daddy, she hugged that stranger!

Dancing with a former stranger-

pic by J. White, at Beaux Bridge, Louisiana

 

 

                But Daddy, I thought we weren’t supposed to even speak to strangers.

                Darling, that’s for little folks. Big people are different. Some talk to strangers all the time. It’s called being sociable.

                Now, here’s the big people’s response to this hypothetical scenario. I’m the ‘big people.’ At 7:30 Saturday morning, after two people had commented that my front tire looked low, and before I drove to Conway for a 9:00 writers’ meeting, I tooled south to Williams Tire--my mechanics and all-round good guys. Only one youngish man was already there, standing and watching the big TV in the waiting area.

                After I surrendered my keys, I walked over. “Looks like rain today, and I’m headed to Conway,” I said to the handsome stranger. We chatted a bit about why we were in this place.

                “I took my son to the high school for a football game and decided since I was this close, I’d check on . . . .”

                I didn’t catch on to the last part of the sentence. What I DID hear was a football game ON SATURDAY morning. When I said, “The little boys?” meaning the future Panther teams, he said, “No, it’s a high school mock game.”

                I must have done the melodramatic back-of-the-hand-against-the-forehead gesture. “I used to teach there. So glad I’m retired.”

                “I thought you looked familiar,” he said. “I was in your class.”

                “Who are you?” I asked.              

“T - - - H - - - - - -.”

I might have whooped, but I don’t remember.

“I remember your name. Was it at Eastside (Junior High)?

“Yeah, Eastside Cougars.”

That’s when I hugged him. And he returned it.

“Isn’t it great that there’s life after junior high?” I said, and he laughed heartily.

 

Darling, see that? Sometimes for big people, strangers turn out to have been younger folks that have grown up. It’s okay to hug them. You’ll understand some day.