It was
a cold and rainy February day, when I decided to get on my horse called
Volkswagen and ride to the local market. This is a market that is located on Captain Drake Avenue's
property. The Kroger family established this
business many years ago and it has become a very lucrative venture for both the city
of Huntsville and its inhabitants. It is a place where individuals can
purchase food as well as entertainment from Red box, a shoeshine vendor that
has a booth located at the entrance of the Kroger store. On this day, I was in
the midst of returning entertainment DVDs to this vendor and as I turned to
mount old Volkswagen, I was immediately approached by a young maiden with a
pleasant smile. She said “Cap'm David, how you be? I’s know it’s been suching a mighty long
time since I’s be seeing you,” she declared in that famous Huntsville vernacular
“we’s should meet again, very soon”.
I was
perplexed, as she spoke for I did not know who she was nor was I familiar with
her family crest. I smiled and nodded my head in a friendly gesture to suggest
that I understood her vernacular however she had me at a disadvantage. While
she was talking, my mind pondered on finer things, I thought about how cold it
was that day, the movie that I had just returned to Red box and the menu for my
evening meal. My thoughts were interrupted when she stated “here’s be my number,
call wince ever you be free cuz'n I’s been free for a couple of yen now”. I
quickly begin to understand her language; for she was telling me that she now was divorced
and wanted to reconnect with me on a later date. My problem was, I still
had no idea who she was nor where she came from, however this mystery would soon be solved, when I opened the small piece of paper she had placed in my cold hands. This was when my
memory quickly returned.
The
name scribbled on this dirty little piece of cotton paper read: Felicia. I then
remembered it was one and a half decades ago that this woman shared living
quarters with me. In those days she was a fair maiden, who would cook and clean for me each
day and her only wish was that I would marry her. However, to her surprise I
decided that marriage was not something that I was interested in at that
particular stage in my life. After hearing the news, which was delivered during the
Christmas season, she decided to gather her belongings and return to her
family. I recall sitting and drinking the Nectar of the Gods, as she packed her last
article of clothing and headed for the front door. It was at this time, that she
looked back and decided she would abduct my Christmas tree. We commenced in a
holy tug of war, which cause many of the branches to be amputated from the trunk of
this tree. I returned the tree to a corner and continue to drink my nectar.As I rode off on old Volkswagen, I felt a moment of sadness as I thought to myself; “was I a bad guy back in those days?” Then I remembered the rest of this story, for it was in the last chapters of this tale that I fixed Felicia up with a dear friend of mine. They got married and had a couple of children. However, I can’t say that they lived happily ever after because she had just declared to me that she had her freedom papers. I am not happy for her divorce but I am happy that I was able to put her in a position to be married, those many years ago. This story has renewed my faith and both Black History and Valentine’s Day because it reminds me that I have had a rich history of love. So on this Valentine’s Day, I would like to encourage my readers to reminisce on past loves while appreciating their present positions, happy Valentine’s Day to all, and to all a good night.
