Words, they weigh so heavily on our hearts and minds. One word can rush feelings from long ago back
into one’s psyche, bedevilling us or filling us with love. So many conflicts in the chronicle of the
world could have been averted, if we were to have used the right words. Daily, words spark new romances, kerfuffles,
and peace between two people or a nation that it’s insurmountable.
I remember a time, about thirteen years ago, when I was
drinking heavily, due to my father leaving, or at least that was my excuse for
sobbing into a bottle of Budweiser. At
the time, I managed an entertainment business for my mother. I used the position to boss people around,
drink while working and general use my power to fire people on a whim to my
advantage.
Part of the business was a go-kart track that I had to keep
close dibs on, because the fellows I had running that division would soften up
on the patrons, and allow them to bang the cars around, which would cost me
money. I had a corner office where I
sat, overlooking the entire complex. One
day, a patron did entirely too much beating and banging with the karts, so I
ran him off, and said that if he ever returned, I’d drag him off the premises myself.
At this time, I was only about 5’8” and 100 pounds, so I
carried a small sledge hammer everywhere I went. (Nothing hurts worse than a broken kneecap.) We
had a lot of drunks at the track on the weekend, so I constantly had to protect
myself and fellow workers, from being beat up by angry patrons that had been
thrown off the track.
A few days after
having the confrontation with the stripling patron, he returned with about ten
of his wiggler (Southern Slang for a teenager that doesn’t know how to dress.) cronies. Sitting at my desk, I discovered them
treading under my window, hoping that I wouldn’t see them. I ran out of my office, forgetting my
sledgehammer, and met them standing at the fence. I looked at the boy, and asked, “Didn’t I run
you out of here a few days ago”?
“We just came to barrow a wrench”, he uttered, while
reaching into his pocket.
One of my employees, covered in motor oil, glanced at the
boy, while working on a kart, and mumbled, “What size wrench do ya need”?
“Um….”
“He doesn’t need a wrench, he just thought he could ride the
karts, even though I told him he couldn’t”, I cried, whilst fitting my fingers
into the brass knuckles in my pocket.
He turned and looked at his friends, glared at me, and
asked, “Why do you have to be such an asshole”?
“Why do you have to be such a little twit, destroying my
karts every time you get a chance?”
He shook his head, spit at my shoes, and screamed, “That’s
all right, you’ll get yours”.
Overconfidently, I stuck out my chest, walked up to the
fence, and said, “I’m waiting”.
His friends dragged him away from me, with him screaming, “Fuck
you, you little shithead”.
“Oh yeah, well…I hope you have a fucking car wreck in that
jalopy of yours, die and go to hell, where you belong”, I replied, whilst
laughing.
I didn’t see him anymore that evening. The very next afternoon, I received a call
that he had been in a car wreck and died, after spinning out of my business
that evening. The sad and atrocious
thing is that I was high on Crown Royal, so I gallantly laughed. I informed the employee’s as I cackled, like
an evil witch, high on smack. A few
years later, someone called me a “shithead”, and the memory and pain of
uttering those words to that young man, came rushing back.
I want each of you to leave your computer right now, call or
go to a loved one (significant other or whatever), and tell them that you love
them. Remember, I know things, so I’ll
know if you didn’t do it. Be real,
genuine, and kind people. Life’s too
short to be cruel. Peace! 
