-Nikki Giovanni

I’ve known this young man very well but the two of us have never met. As a 14 year old he is full of energy, vigor and controlled aggression that I do not recognize in myself. I can imagine as he prepares for his day ahead and I know that this Friday will be no different than any other. As the clock strikes 7:45 am, he will recklessly gather his tools that he will need to survive the day that really begins at 8am. The English paper was completed at 3 in the morning but the vocabulary assignment will have to wait for the car ride. A large book will follow a previously considered large book into a knapsack. A plain and semi burnt Eggo waffle will be snatched from the toaster as he rushes out the front door.

Still two years away from that magical day that brings hope for a 16 year boy filled with visions of summer night freedom and daily independence, he must now rely on a ride from his parents. His mother and father, on their way to work, will drop him off at his little pond where he will swim like a medium sized fish. The private school on the other side of the tracks isn’t very far from the family’s house and it is there where I will meet with him today.

My goal is to confront him about some concerns that I have for his future development. This encounter is by no means meant to be a scarred straight tactic; instead I hope to warn him of things to come so that he can prepare for them in the present as needed. In some ways I feel like this is a twisted re-run of the classic movie Back to the Future. In every way this young man reminds me of myself and it will not be a stretch for me to relate to his daily life and lack of a self fulfilling agenda. This is my Marty McFly moment and I will certainly take advantage before the flux capacitator runs out of juice to get me back to 2006.

This is my chance to warn him of the jealousy, stress, complacency, fear, depression, anxiety, aggression, guilt, nervousness, fatigue, disappointment, frustration, hurt, confusion, pain, betrayal, setbacks, envy he will feel and experience at any given moment between now and the ripe old age of 28. I have to show alternatives and new paths to walk to avoid many of the pitfalls I made taking his same journey. If only he be-friends “Steve” instead of “John” or gets an “A” instead of a “B”, his life would surely be for the better. I feel like this is a small order and all within the realm of possibility before the lightning hits the clock tower. I have had years to plot alternatives to each of those haunting experiences.

As he walks through the door I notice the swagger and pride he has as a guilt free, yet naïve, young man. I think to myself, “If” he can keep his head when all about him are losing theirs and blaming him…life will be cake in the hand of a baker. As I walk towards him I do not utter a word and continue to walk out of the door he just made his grand entrance through. He glanced in my direction and gave me a familiar nod in appreciation for our moment of connective silence. Each step he takes is a lessoned learned and my memory to reflect upon. My memories, his reality. My experiences, his truth. My lessons learned, his to gain… all in a matter of time.