(Preview of Decem Verba ex Corde, coming soon. Enjoy)
(Coincidence – comprehension – restaurant –
trio – wedding – formula – lemonade – intervene – roof – distraction)
The beautiful city of L’Eternel Est Roi. Saturday evening, 7:23 PM.
The fellas have gathered at Benjamin’s. It is a popular restaurant known for its gourmet
burgers. Friends since childhood, the crew of Brandon “Nintendo” Hawkins,
Coleco Brown, and Frank “October” Jones have seen the best and the worst of
times, individually, and collectively. Through it all, the trio has maintained the close connection their families have
shared for four generations.
Another commonality these men share is that they are all brothers-in-law,
married to sibling women from the Green family. Nintendo has been married to
Karen Green for five years. Coleco, married the longest, has been the husband
of Robin Green for seven years. October and Leslie are relative newlyweds,
having just celebrated their one year wedding
anniversary.
This is a weekly chew-and-chat the guys do, just to hang out and talk
about whatever is on the mind. It is a new tradition, one established by these
gentlemen just six months ago. Nintendo speaks first. “Gentlemen, it is good to
see you, as always. Let’s go ahead and order. We have new one joining us soon.”
“Who?” asked October.
Coleco’s eyes narrow. “Probably Angie’s dude, boy toy, man servant,
whatever he is. What’s the cat’s name again? And what color is his mother?”
Nintendo eyes narrow at Coleco. “Why does it even matter what color his
mother is? His name is Demetrius. And
he’s not a boy toy. He’s Angie’s man. So chill out.”
The “Angie” they are referring to is Angela Green, yet another sibling.
So, if you’re keeping score, this equals four Green women – Karen, Robin,
Leslie, and Angela, whose boyfriend is Demetrius Gant, private detective and
huge sports fan. He has just entered the restaurant and sat down with the other
gentlemen. “Greetings, gentlemen. Blessings on you all,” he warmly greets them,
shaking hands with each one before he sits down.
Nintendo: “Greetings, my brother Demetrius. We’ve started ordering
already, but the waitress will be back to take your order.”
Demetrius gives a slight hand gesture. “I’ve already placed my order.
And you brothas can relax, your meal’s on me today.” Coleco’s eyes widen.
“Ohhhh! Well, welcome. I see you learn quickly. The new guy always picks up the
tab on the first visit. And by the way…what color is your mother?” October
throws a straw at Coleco. “Um, this is the
first new guy…so knock it off!”
Everyone laughs. Eventually, the food arrives. Nintendo, the health
conscious one, selected the Grilled Cherry Tomato Turkey Burger. Orlando chose
the Chicken Caesar Burger. Coleco, the adventurous one, ordered the West Coast
Burger with Roasted Pepper Spread. Demetrius played it relatively safe with the
Apple Bacon Onion Ring Burger.
Nintendo speaks. “Alright, guys, since this is the first get together
we’ve had in three weeks, let’s get caught up on the latest. What’s going on
with everybody?”
October: “Aye Ten, you finally get that kitchen renovation finished?”
Nintendo breathes out a long sigh. “Yeah, man, it’s finally done. New
stove and fridge were just delivered the other day."
Coleco: “I’ll bet your wife is happy. I would be too if my spouse just
spent three grand on new appliances.”
Nintendo: “More like close to FOUR grand. And yes, she is happy. But
you know how it goes…new kitchen, same old habits. She STILL leaves all the
cabinets open.”
Coleco: “You serious?”
Nintendo: “Man, all the time. Drives me nuts.”
Coleco: “October’s wife does the same thing. Forever be leavin’ the
cabinets open. Cracks me up.”
October cuts him off. “Hold on there, my brotha. You talk about YOUR
wife, not mine! Don’t forget I was at your house the other day. Your wife be
leavin’ the cabinets open too, bruh.”
Coleco: “I know. It’s just more funny when your crazy wife does it.”
October: “Hey hey hey! Lesley is NOT crazy. Ten’s wife is crazy.”
Coleco: “Ok, I’ll give you that. Ten’s wife is crazy. Ten, how many times do I gotta tell you, stop letting
your wife do the chicken dance in the middle of Walmart! That ain’t Godly,
son.”
Nintendo stares blankly at Coleco. “Look, I just let Karen be Karen.
You know there’s no stopping her. Besides, I figure if anyone could appreciate
it, you would. I would think you'd welcome a distraction as you’re walking through the store carrying
Robin’s maxi pads and bunion soak formula.”
Coleco points a finger. “Hey now…my wife does not have bunions.”
October: “Could y’all please cool it, you’re probably scaring my man
Demetrius over here.”
Demetrius, who has barely been able to eat his food from laughing so
much, speaks to the group. “No, I’m cool. I’m just over here laughing and
enjoying this. It’s funny y’all mention all this, ‘cause I go to Angela’s and
cook her dinner sometimes…”
Coleco: “Oooooooh! So what kind of love potions do you make for her?
And what color is your mother?”
Demetrius throws an ice cube at him. “Cut it out! But anyway, I’ll be
there sometimes cooking for her, and I notice she leaves her cabinets open,
too. It’s interesting.”
Nintendo takes a drink of his lemonade.
“Let me ask you guys a question. Has it always been like this with you all?”
October: “Actually, no, but it has been going on for a long while. As
everybody here knows, Leslie and I just celebrated one year being married.
Because we both had to go right back to work, we didn’t have a chance to have a
honeymoon. Leslie’s always wanted to go to Hawaii. Right after we prayed and
asked God to make a way for us to go, Leslie started leaving the cabinets open.
Just a habit she started.
“Last week, my boss informs me that I’ve won a contest I didn’t even
know I was entered in. Our parent company is giving me a week-long trip to
Hawaii, all expenses paid. Even our food is paid! And they gave me time
off…plus, Leslie has paid time off, so we’re headed out next week!”
Nintendo: “That’s wonderful! Three months ago, Karen called me at work,
talking about we have a leak in our roof.
Estimates ranged anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000. Obviously, we don’t have that
kind of money just lying around. We prayed and asked God to intervene. It was right about
this time that she started leaving the cabinets open. Next thing I know, the
company who previously worked on the roof sends us a letter stating that there
is a warranty on the roof. We ended up having the work done for free. But it’s
nothing compared to Coleco’s testimony.”
Coleco takes a drink of water, tears in his eyes. “Robin and I have
been praying and believing for healing for our son. We’ve been to this doctor
and that doctor, all kinds of therapy sessions. They said he’ll always be
behind his age in comprehension and development. I know I tease Robin a lot
about leaving the cabinets open, but one thing about her, she’s a woman of
faith. We stood together and believed that God would perform a miracle…and let
me tell you, He has! Our son is five years old, and before he had a two year
old’s comprehension. Now, he
has the comprehension of a six year old. He’s developing ahead of his age!”
Demetrius leans back in his chair, in total amazement. “Guys, Angela
started leaving her cabinets open right about the time she started having
problems with her hand. The doctor thought she would miss two weeks off work
after surgery. We prayed about it, and when they went in to do the surgery,
they found that all they had to do was clear out some tissue buildup. She was
back to work within two days.”
Nintendo looks at everyone. “Do you realize what is happening here? I
don’t think it’s any coincidence
that our ladies are all leaving the cabinets open. It’s a sign from God. When
we leave our cabinets open, it’s an act of faith that moves God to work on our
behalf. This could very well a new spiritual tradition in our family.”
The dinner continues, and eventually the gentlemen walk outside of
Benjamin’s to leave. As is their custom, they join hands in a circle on the
sidewalk and pray for each other’s families.
Later in the evening, Demetrius receives a surprising text message:
“Aye D., it’s Coleco. Cool to
finally meet you tonight. Sorry if I gave you too much of a hard time. Thanks for the meal. Treat my sister in law right!
Just one question though…what color is your mother?”
