True Story of Halloween Terror

don't drink and drive

 

i was short the cash needed

for next semesters tuition

i was outta options

so i swallowed my pride

and called my father

i had’nt seen him

for a least eight years

i was busy nursing

sweet regrets

extending a prolonged

illness of resent

Halloween 1977

i borrowed my

girlfriends VW

and drove down

to Union to reunite

with Dad

his secretary

ushered me

into his C Level

office and I was

struck by the

introduction of

an angelic

portrait of

my half sister

adorning the

space above

his head

we shook hands

and i sat on a

chair in front of

his desk. it was

an awkward

moment of

small talk relieved

by the passing

of a $400 check

into my just

stewardship

my father suggested

we head to lunch

where we would break

bread together for

the first time in years

it would also present

opportunities to

swallow the misgiven

years with draughts

of gin and tonics

by this time my

father was a

professional drinking

champion, quaffing

down the booze to

drown his own

considerable

misgivings

as a young

virile turk

meeting with

his father for

the first time

in years, i was

determined

to match his skill

mano a mano

it was a foolhardy

endeavor but my

intrepidness was

unfazed as i matched

rounds to round

proclaiming my

arrival into

manhood

leaving the restaurant

my father suggested

we resume our drinking

at a local dive

there the velocity

of rounds accelerated

the drinking spinning

faster than the

room swimming

around my head

but I was determined

to prove my manhood

standing toe to toe

with my lost father

proving i was his

equal in the

endeavors

of men

don’t remember how many

rounds we downed but

it was a considerable

amount consumed

we went next

to his friends

pizza parlor

where he could

present his long

lost son

we spoke of

my wonderful

girlfriend, and

dad suggested

i go get her so we

could all meet

he flipped me the keys

to his company car

a brand new

Ford Wagon LTD

man I was riding high

styling, livin life large

rollling up the GSP

headin to Montvale

to fetch my princess

in a royal carriage

when i got to

her house my

girlfriend and her

mother expressed

concerns about

my condition

i suavely made

the case that i was ok

to make the 40

mile trek to meet

my father

it was after all a

special occasion

to present my girl

to my newly

found dad

so off we went

back to Union

the drive was going

well best as i can

remember; though my

girlfriend was uneasy

as i swerved down

the parkway

it was in East Orange

the traffic was heavy

we were in the flow

following a station

wagon filled with

kids

my eyelids were

getting heavy

and I clipped

the railroad tie

median barrier

with the cars rear end

the wagon went into a

wobbling swerve

i fought to control

but could not

i remember my

last words

in my head “lord

protect us” and

fell onto the lap

of my girl

the crash, the spin

the resounding din

thundered into

my last bit of

consciousness

like a tragic

Stravinsky lullaby

screaming me

to sleep

i blinked awake in

an East Orange

hospital in the

wee hours of

All Saints Day

unsure where

I was but realizing

why i was there

I ardently asked

a dismissive nurse

if any children

were hurt

and where my

girlfriend had gone

she adamantly

refused to answer

my urgent fear filled

questions; stating I had

been asking these

same questions all night

thinking about

the children

playing in the back

of the car

and my missing

girlfriend filled

me with a

shocking

trembling

terror of what

my drinking

hath wrought

Halloween 1977

was a night filled

with frightening

realizations of

unresolved

unanswered

questions

it would be

another three

decades before

i commenced

a search to

answer these

frightening

questions

in earnest

Happy Halloween

Pat Metheny Group:

Are You Going With Me?

Oakland

10/31/13

jbm