Commencement

by Lawrence Cherry

When Mr. Hardy had asked Allen if he would go on a special errand for him, he was more than happy to do so. In the past few weeks, Allen’s attitude toward his job had changed. He found that he actually liked working at the Sheraton. At first, Allen thought the work would be boring; the same mundane tasks over and over again. However, he was doing a lot more than just cleaning the building. There was Davis who was teaching him all sorts of things about repairs, and even Mr. Hardy had been sharing his insights on building management, which were very interesting. Yes, there were tasks that he had to do everyday, but because of all of the things that could happen in the process of his duties, everyday was different. There was always something that came up that would make his work just that much more remarkable.

  On this occasion, Mr. Hardy was trying to find some special parts for the washing machines the laundry women used to clean the sheets. He’d been searching hardware stores on the Internet to find the part when he discovered a little shop over on 115th and Broadway sold the part. Mr. Hardy called the store to place an order and then arranged for Allen to go over to pick it up. Allen took the 1 train and got off at 116th and Columbia University. Upon reaching the surface, Allen took a few moments to admire the stately looking campus and watch the traffic of students coming in and out of the huge wrought iron front gates. Something stirred in his heart, but Allen didn’t quite know what it meant. So he just walked the rest of the way down to the hardware store and picked up the package of parts that he was sent for.

  Allen’s errand did not take much time at all and it was not long before he was headed back toward the train station. Allen slowed his pace as he passed the campus gates of Columbia University again. Allen felt something drawing him in, so he went past the gates to take a tour of the campus.

  The buildings seemed a lot like the ones at Harvard, but the campus here was a bit smaller. Allen walked down the college walk to where the fountain was. He looked up to where the Alma Mater sat in front of Low Library. Allen took a walk up the steps and past the grand hall to the other side of the campus dotted by stately cherry trees and surrounded by more imposing looking structures until he came to Uris Hall, home to the Columbia University School of Business. Allen knew Tim had just graduated from here last spring, and had thought of applying here himself at one time, but it was very expensive. He always thought that when he graduated from college he would get a job in finance and then he would either have the money to go or his employers would sponsor him to go. Thinking about it brought up Allen’s old dreams for himself and it made him kind of sad. This school was totally out of his league. His current job was barely enough to keep the loan officers off his back as it was. Besides, God had taken him away from that life. It was God that did not allow him to get a job in the financial sector in the first place. “Why in the world did I come here?” Allen pondered. “I really should be getting back to the Sheraton.”

  Allen was about to turn away when he heard it.

  “Keep going.”

  Allen walked a little further along the campus, and past a small footbridge until he reached East Campus. There he was faced with the imposing Columbia University School of Law.

  Law School? Allen had never ever once entertained the idea of becoming a lawyer. That was Jim’s thing. When Allen was younger they both had it all figured out. Allen would be the corporate tycoon and Jim would be his counsel. Besides, even if he was interested, there was no way that he could afford graduate school. He didn’t want to end up living with his parents in perpetuity and/or having them forsake their retirement.

  “No, this couldn’t be God speaking. Could it? He put me at the Sheraton”, he puzzled. Allen turned away again.

  “Go in and get an application.”

  It didn’t make sense. But Allen went inside the huge building. He found the admissions office and picked up an application and the accompanying financial aid forms. He put them in his bag with the package he was carrying and headed back over to the Sheraton Hotel, with a confidence he had never before experienced.

  Seventy-Seven

  It was late and Jim was on his way to the special little bodega on the corner. The voice had come back and Jim needed the only thing that would silence it. The bodega was only a few steps away, but it seemed that he couldn’t get there fast enough.

  When he finally arrived, he bolted to the window and made his request.

  “Sugar.”

  Then he went to the hidden back door to get his package. He checked it briefly, stuck it in his pocket and headed back out. As he was leaving, he noticed pair of men coming in. Jim kept his head down and walked out. He had gone halfway down the block and back to his building where he was confronted by two men. One was African-American and the other was White.

  “NYPD” said the African-American man as both men flashed their badges “We want to talk to you for a minute.”

  All Jim could think about was the package that was in his pocket. It carried with it a mandatory 10-year jail sentence. What if they searched him? Jim did the only thing he could do: he ran.

  “Stop!” he heard one of the officers call after him.

  Jim ran as fast as he could. He had no idea where he was going, but he knew he had to get away from the officers. He ran into the traffic even though the signal was against him. He’d rather be dead, than just another brother in jail. Luckily or not, most of the cars just stopped short of running him over. Jim kept running until he saw a large housing project. He thought with so many buildings and alleys he would easily be able to lose them.

  Soon, Jim could no longer hear the tread of their footsteps behind him. He was too scared to look back, but he hoped he was losing them. Then Jim ran onto a grassy lawn and through a narrow footpath. He had almost made it to side alley when he felt a huge weight take him down.

  “Stay on the ground!” the officer ordered.

  The cop had tackled Jim to the ground and was kneeling on Jim’s lower torso. Jim could feel the metal tip of the officer’s revolver pressing into his back. It was over.

  After a moment, the African-American cop had caught up with his partner.

  “Did you search him?”

  “I’m about to.”

  The other officer came and cuffed Jim’s hand while the one on top of him searched him. It didn’t take long for them to find it.

  “Well, well, well…what a surprise”, the white officer sneered.

  The African-American officer started to read Jim the Miranda law. And over the officer’s voice, he could hear another.

  “It’s time to stop running.”

  Seventy-Eight

  “At least it’s starting to get warm. Maybe we’ll have an early spring”, remarked Allen just before taking a sip of his coffee.

  “I hope so. It feels like it’s been winter forever. And I’m tired of all these snow storms”, said Tamiko responding to Allen.

  “I don’t know it depends on how you see it. I personally can do without the summer”, added Davis.

  “Word, yo. If you cold it’s easy to get warm, but if you hot it ain’t that easy to cool down”, said Richard.

  Then there was a moment of silence between them. They had all gathered at their usual spot at Emily Ann’s. All they could muster was this polite banter. No one had the courage to talk about the one thing that was on all their minds. At least not yet.

  “So Al, when are you going to officially submit your application for the law school?” asked Davis.

  “It’s too late to for me to be considered for the fall term. I may try to see if I can get it in for the next year, but we’ll see. I’m still praying to God about it.”

  “Any idea what you’re going to major in when you go?”

  “Nothing definite yet.” Allen didn’t want to give away too much of what the Lord had revealed to him just yet.

  “Speaking of school, how did your test go?”

  “I got an 80”, Davis declared proudly.

  “That’s fantast
ic, man. So now you’re ready for that program.”

  “And not only that, but I passed my other tests, too. In June I’m going to be able to graduate with a real regents high school diploma, God willing.”

  “Are you kidding?! Of course you will. That’s awesome!” smiled Tamiko.

  “You could probably get into any of those college joints you want with that Regents diploma”, Richard added.

  “I’m just trying to see what this program is about. You have no idea how good it feels to even be one step closer to getting my contracting license. Oh, and how’s things with you Miko? They still harassing you at school?”

  “Actually, things have gotten much better. I’m so glad I listened to my Dad. The Quality Review went way better than I expected. The reviewer said he could hardly believe I was a first year teacher. After he gave me such a great review the Principal had no choice but to give me a satisfactory rating. And believe me she didn’t want to.”

  “So does this mean you get to keep your job?” inquired Allen.

  “Yes, but I still don’t know if I want to stay there. That principal is still out to get me, and my only friend there is leaving. I’m thinking of transferring to another school for the fall.”

  “But look at how much God has worked out for you there. He took your enemies and made them your footstool, just as He said He would. If God wants you there, you won’t have to worry about them”, Davis reminded her.

  “You’re right, but I haven’t made my final decision yet. I’m still praying about it.”

  “With all of these wonderful things happening, you would think we’d all be jumping out of our seats”, said Allen dryly.

  “I just wish…” Tamiko stopped in the middle of her sentence unable to finish it.

  “Has anybody heard from him?” asked Richard in an unusually staid tone.

  “Not since Wednesday, before they were supposed to do the MRI again.”

  “He probably just got caught up with everything. He’s supposed to be back in a couple of days. I think we’ll definitely hear from him before then”, said Davis as confidently as he could.

  “I always meant to ask you Tamiko, what was in that envelope he gave you?” asked Allen.

  “A gold watch on a chain. Like those old fashioned ones men used to carry around in the 1900’s. Why?”

  “Did it have the initials TR on it?” Allen continued to inquire.

  “Yes. How did you know? He showed it to you before?” asked Tamiko a bit puzzled.

  “Yeah. It’s his grandfather’s”, Allen said quietly.

  “Is there something special about it?” asked Davis.

  “He never parts with it.”

  There was another silence.

  “I don’t know about y’all, but after that prayer meeting we had last week, I felt like…like, peaceful. Like everything is gonna work out”, said Richard.

  “Funny. I felt that same peace too. In fact, even lately when I’ve been praying for him, this peace comes over me”, said Tamiko.

  “Same here”, agreed Davis. “But, it’s kinda strange…like…like…”

  “Like you want to be upset, but you can’t. You want to be scared, but you can’t. He doesn’t tell you specifically what’s going to happen, and yet, you know. You already know, and all you can do is wait”, remarked Allen in the same sober tone.

  “You think…” started Tamiko.

  “I think the will of the Lord will be done. And no matter what happens, He’s still God”, said Allen. After that no one else had anything more to say. Allen had said it all.

  Suddenly, Allen couldn’t hold back the flood of tears that began to roll down his cheeks. Something was taking hold of him. It spoke to his spirit. He knew. Just as surely as he knew his own name, he knew. And he knew Tim knew as well. He could feel it in the depths of his soul.

  “Hallelujah”, he said out loud in spite of himself.

  Allen couldn’t help himself, all at once he felt the need to praise the Lord. He stood up and raised his hands to God.

  “Glory to God. Hallelujah. Thank You, Jesus!”

  Allen collapsed back into his seat, but he couldn’t stop praising God. He couldn’t stop crying. No one else at the table said anything. They could all feel it, too. Tamiko put her arms around Allen, before growing weepy herself. Soon they were all crying and praising God. The other patrons of the restaurant looked over at their table with concern. A waitress stopped by to see if everything was okay. No one was able to respond. Instead, Richard and Davis helped Allen up and they all proceeded to leave.

  Allen had always wondered why the people at church shouted, wailed, and danced. Now he knew. It was because no matter what was going on in their lives, God still ruled on the throne. He is a loving God, a just God, a merciful God and a God of judgment. And Allen was glad for that because he knew that as long as that is true, then God’s promises are true. And as long as God’s promises are true, there is always reason to rejoice. The victory had already been won.

  Also Available from Lawrence Cherry

  School of Hard Knocks: The Re-Education of Jim Reid.

  Nearly a year after his arrest and subsequent conviction for drug possession, Jim Reid is struggling to rebuild his life. All he wants is a second chance, but it seems society will not allow him to forget the mistakes of his past. Battling unemployment, financial ruin, and his own personal demons, Jim realizes that he needs help. Instead of turning to the only one who can help, Jim begins to rely on his new friend, Smoke, a small time drug dealer who dreams of making it big. 

  Smoke promises Jim that he will find the solution to all of his problems in “the thug life” and teaches him how to navigate the underbelly of the inner-city. “The thug life” turns out to be much more than Jim bargained for. Ultimately, Jim finds himself trapped in Smoke’s perilous world with no way out, except one. But will Jim take it before it’s too late?

  The School of Hard Knocks: The Re-education of Jim Reid is the second part of Lawrence Cherry’s Commencement saga. The series follows a group of young African-Americans who learn about, life, love, and faith and how to live a good life in an increasingly immoral society.

  ***

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lawrence Cherry is a pen name that is used by the author who is a born again believer whose purpose in writing this work is to give glory and praise to God and his son Jesus Christ. It is the author’s fervent desire that God will use this work to inspire others to come to the knowledge of Christ and be saved, and to encourage the faith of those who already believe.

  Other titles from SJS DIRECT Digital

  The Saga of MastiKatious

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  A Recipe for $ucce$$

  All About Marilyn

  All About Nikki-Three Episodes From the Fabulous First Season

  All About Nikki The Fabulous First Season

  All About Nikki-Sensational Season 2 Sneak Preview

  An Analysis of the Comic Book Industry’s issues

  The Myth of the Strong Black Woman

  STOP SIMPIN- How men can get Romance without Finance

  SPRAY EM’ UP (coming in July)

  The Politics of Hell(Coming in July)

  The Sneakers

  Commencement

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  shawnsjames.blogspot.com

 
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