every friday mornng my dad, who lives in saraland, alabama, goes to the local krystal fast food resturant an eats breakfast with “the boys”. “the boys” are a group of 70 year old men who sit around, drink coffee, eat cheap krystal’s biscuits, and discuss the world as they know it. they solve all the world’s problems but then unfortunately because they are in their 70’s they quickly forget the answers to these problems before they reach the door on their way to solves the ills of the world. it has to be a tiring process knowing that you have just solved all the issues with which humanity regularly struggles and yet also knowing you can’t remember the solutions which you reached. life is tough for “the boys.”
being as this is the thanksgiving holiday i have been spending the week hoping between my parents, in saraland, and pam’s parent’s, in tilman’s corner, just down the street 15 minutes or so. since, i was in town dad asked if i would like to go with him to listen to “the boys”. you see, my dad is no where near 70 yet but unfortunately he is old enough that his memory has begun to fade. when he listens to “the boys” and then leaves he is only able to remember that what they said was really good. he simply can’t remember what was so good about what they had said and thus he can’t remember the solutions to the problems of the world that they reached. by going to hear “the boys” my role was suppose to be “the young one with the good memory”. “the boys” would discuss the problems, reach the solutions and then i being younger than either “the boys” or my dad would remember the solutions and bring them out to the world. the plan was that at 6:30 a.m. dad would knock on my door and i would go to join “the boys” with him.
i stayed up all night waiting for my dad to knock on the door, get me, and together with “the boys” solve the ills of humanity. at 6:30 a.m. i didn’t hear anything. i was afraid to get up and open the door. what if something had happened to “the boys”? what would become of the world? i waited. at 7:00 a.m. i was still expecting that at any minute my dad would knock on the door and th world would be made right. i continued waiting in my room listening to pam breathe until 7:30 a.m. then i opened the door and walked out into the world. i looked around hoping to find my dad, for i suddenly realized that i didn’t know where the krystals is that “the boys” met at. dad was no where to be found. he had already left to eat breakfast with the boys and had forgotten to knock on my door. apparently his memory is worse than i originally thought.
so the my strategy has to change a little bit. i now have to bring someone young enough to remember to get my dad to knock on the oor so that i can then go to “the boys” and be young enough to remember their solutions.
the world will have to wait just a little longer.